Il Numero Uno

Product description

Number One is one of the best novels ever written about racing. Its secret lies in its author, Hans Ruesch, who before becoming a famous writer was a driver and raced on the racetracks of the 1930s, challenging giants such as Caracciola, Nuvolari, Seaman, Rosemeyer, and Varzi.

Ruesch tells the story of Erwin Lester, a racer who is a victim of himself, of being a better driver than anyone else, a more champion than his rivals. It’s the story of a man who wins on the track but loses in life, and who is unable to love and make his woman happy. Always first at the finish line, he becomes a man without dreams, and she falls in love with his young teammate. The ending is surprising and anything but do-gooder. Without embellishment or moralizing, Ruesch’s story remains that of a man and a woman who fall in love because of their differences and, because of them, must part.

This is why Number One is a timely book in its truth and its themes, more than emblematic of today’s life.