Forty Cars That Owned Me

This author loves cars!

Many people develop a love affair for their favorite car. Pat Nowak grew up in Michigan and has amassed a wide selection of 'war stories' about forty unique cars including an Aston Martin DB-5, three Jaguars, road racing cars, Pro Rally cars, most of the domestic brands, and the author's all time favorite, a 1962 Triumph TR-3B roadster. His new book, Forty Cars That Owned Me from Infinity Publishing, is right on the mark. Pat Nowak tells as much (and WAY more) in this, his first book, about cars, life, and everything connected. In that even those of us who love cars and love to drive them will probably never log as many miles as Nowak, or own as many cars, or drive in road rallies and own a Jaguar XKE, it¿s a treat to share his memories and experiences. He talks of his adventures in a light-hearted manner that even readers who have only had casual experiences owning and loving cars can appreciate and enjoy. Pat is witty, and his writing is easy on the ear. The result is a highly attuned and well crafted work that mines the stories surrounding forty cars that fell closest to his heart. He has a refined sense of what makes a car special, what he calls ¿the Secret Sauce.¿ As he describes it, ¿The ¿Secret Sauce¿ is outstanding styling plus substance. In my view, the car's looks are the most important thing, given of course, that there is a solid vehicle underneath the shapely surfaces.¿ ¿Consider the Jaguar XKE,¿ he explains. ¿Its looks are absolutely seductive. Underneath the skin is a robust motor, independent suspension, inboard rear brakes, and a smooth shifting four speed on the floor. The cockpit reminds one of a vintage fighter plane. Performance wise it has the acceleration, top speed, braking capabilities, and handling that exceeded almost everything else available at the time it was built. I consider it the epitome of cars with the ¿Secret Sauce¿.' In actuality, he admits to having owned 65 cars in all. Pretty much all of them embraced a story or two. The beauty of these stories lies in the connections he makes with guys and gals who had great times with their cars, and are willing to share them. It has taken him more than four years to get it all down on paper, but this book turns out to be a gem of a collection that explores the fine art of finding, buying, and building the car of your dreams. Everybody has a dream, what¿s your dream? In Forty Cars That Owned Me Nowak explains that the dream comes from not only owning the car, but incorporating it into your life experience, which is a very American phenomenon. Yes, other countries have produced drivers that were prolific road racing and Pro Rally drivers, but Pat¿s writing really personalizes the experiences as a young guy and then an adult living in the Midwest -- a very specific, unique experience. You feel like you are there, in Michigan, on the road, in the race, possibly driving 150 mph, slip-sliding through tight corners, down long straight-aways, maybe on a long deserted highway. He crashes a few cars, yeah, but so haven¿t we all? The charging on through, breaking on through smoke and debris to the other side -- not to mention but yeah let¿s mention, through raising kids and keeping a marriage together, through excruciating long nights on the road as a salesmen -- that¿s what makes these car tales human. This is stuff we¿ve all been through, a very American experience. No one maybe would want to go back and do it over again, but damn, it¿s a blast to revisit it! Nobody can say it wasn¿t a time to survive, and a time to carry on. He keeps his comments on his sleeve, and shows you everything that he feels. He loves that blonde ¿fox¿ (his words, not mine in my day they were called chicks!) who sat in the seat beside him in his favorite all-time car, the 1962 Triumph TR-3B roadster. So you know very early on that he¿s not just some motor head. In fact, what he shares about his struggle and eventual victory over alcohol addiction is endearing. Tha

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