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10/01/2011
By EWAN KENNEDY
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If you enjoyed reading about cars anytime during the 1950s through to the early 2000s then the name Pedr Davis is sure to be familiar to you. During six decades, Pedr wrote numerous newspaper and magazine articles as well as quite a few books.
The books were mainly on motoring subjects but he also wrote on such wide ranging subjects as aviator Charles Kingsford Smith and the history of the Sydney suburb of Hurstville.
Pedr soon earned a name for being fair and unbiased and for his willingness to tell the truth in his road test reviews on many thousands of vehicles.
Now Pedr Davis has written his autobiography and has called it, what else? ‘Rear Vision, an auto-biography’.
Pedr said that he originally wrote it only for his grandchildren but was eventually persuaded that it would be of interest to the vast multitude of readers who felt they had come to know him, if only in print, over six decades.
Reading the book it’s easy to picture Pedr sitting in front of his grandchildren, fascinating them with many anecdotes. I have heard many of the stories myself, first when we both worked independently as motoring journalists, later as a colleague when my brother and I bought Pedr’s business, Marque Publishing, upon his retirement in 1994.
‘Rear Vision an auto-biography’ is the fascinating story of a quiet young man who grew up in England, where he worked in the engineering department of the Austin car company. He travelled extensively worldwide during that job and eventually decided to live in Australia, where he has remained ever since.
Some of the tales of the early years are the most fascinating of all. Without giving too much away, I promise you will be intrigued by his playing tennis at Wimbledon and his participation in the Davis Cup.
Pedr Davis has spent time with many, many of legendary people, including Jack Brabham, Stirling Moss, Juan Manuel Fangio and Soichiro Honda, Ralph Sarich amongst many others.
Rear Vision an auto-biography is available from MARQUE MOTOR BOOKS (02 4329 4637) or other specialised motoring bookshops and has a recommended retail price of just $29.95. |
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