7 Books about Enzo Ferrari to Read Before (or After) You See the Movie

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Whether you’ve seen the movie yet or not, consider reading more about the fascinating life of this great man. The truth is a little further from what you see in the movie but the movie is close, as close as Hollywood will ever get to a subject, anyway. Here are seven different takes on Ferrari, two written by Ferrari himself. Many are out of print and will take some searching to find. It’ll usually be worth the effort.

Enzo Ferrari: The Man and the Machine

This is the very book upon which the movie Ferrari is based. Brock Yates was one of the greatest writers in automotive journalism, and in fact wrote a couple movies himself, Cannonball Run being the most famous. He also started the Cannonball Run. Let's just say he was prolific.

Here he has focused his considerable talents on the most influential and iconoclastic character in the automotive industry, a man whose shadow extends all across racing, sports car manufacturing and what would come to be called the supercar. Yates covers Enzo's entire life, along with all the races and all his various picadillos. It's so broad a book that it's almost amusing to see that the few sections in the middle about the 1957 Mille Miglia that were chosen for the movie are only a few short pages, just as that chapter of Ferrari's life was also just a small part. But Yates' writing is so good that you will be swept along through the whole thing. It'll make you want to dig up old copies of Car and Driver just to read more.

Enzo Ferrari: Power, Politics, and the Making of an Automotive Empire

Italian writer Luca Dal Monte was actually an employees of Ferrari for several years, as the PR guy for Ferrari North America. He refers to that time in his life as "magical." Anyone who was lucky enough to be working at a car magazine in those years (me!) benefitted from Dal Monte's creativity and enthusiasm.

This is perhaps the most thorough book about the life of this great man, Enzo Ferrari, with details and truths you won't find anywhere else. Ferrari first met his main mistress Lina Lardi in the 1920s, for instance, not in the '40s, and he remained with her the rest of his life. And Lina Lardi wasn't the only "other woman" in Enzo's life. He was, if not quite a hound dog, then certainly an enthusiastic pursuer of beautiful women. The book also covers details of the race team, the Ford/Fiat intrigue, the road cars, everything. It's written in exactly the way I/we all remember Luca speaking, with an Italian phraseology that is authentic and adds to the experience of reading it.

If you're really dedicated, there's a special Publisher's Edition bound in genuine Schedoni Italian red leather, the same stuff used in Ferraris, and is signed by former Ferrari President Luca di Montezemolo, drivers Mario Andretti, Jody Scheckter, Gerhard Berger, and Stefan Johansson, and Ferrari insider and author Luca Dal Monte.

Either way, it's a great and complete read about a fascinating character.

Red Arrows: Ferraris at the Mille Miglia

This book is long since out of print, but there are copies floating around. The link above popped up when I was looking for copies, but it might not be there when you try. Just keep searching.

The book covers all the Ferraris that raced in the storied and very dangerous Mille Miglia, from Franco Cortese's abbreviated drive in a 125 S in the 1947 Mille, to the tragic but victorious finale in 1957, this book covers everything, including all the details you'll see in the movie. Best wishes finding a copy, but if you do, you will have a treasure trove of insight and understanding.