The Stig: The Untold Story

Simon du Beaumarche did a good job writing this book. It is an easy read with a few words that would take a trip to the dictionary. The interviews with major people in the automotive world are awesome and sometimes funny. I would say this book was pretty hard to put down as I am a fan of Top Gear. If not a fan, then this book would still be entertaining, but the drive to finish this book is not there. This is meant for people who are fans of the show since we all want to know, who is THE STIG? If you are a person that actually wants to know answer to that question, then get this book.

I expected a lot of silly things in this book. However, I didn't expect the entirety of the content to be silly things presented as factual.If you'll enjoy being told that the Stig appeared on the Top Gear test track during tryouts, preceded by a gust of cold air and a flock of crows, then by all means read the book. If you expected there to be any inside information in this book, run the other way.Unfortunately, this is a load of crap presented without apology to fans of Top Gear. This is the only Kindle book I've ever returned for being garbage.If you want to read something much more interesting about the Stig, read The Man in the White Suit: The Stig, Le Mans, The Fast Lane and Me. It's a lot of fun and also has a lot of real background info on the Stig and Top Gear.Addition because I couldn't let this go:Fans of the show will know that "stig" was the nickname given to new boys at the boarding school Clarkson attended. To further illustrate how insulting this book is to fans, the book claims that the Stig himself carved "STIG" into a metal wall, probably with his own hands. They assumed that this was his name, or at least the best they'd ever get. The book also claims that the nickname for new boys at Clarkson's school was "bumhole," so the rumor of Clarkson coming up with the name is untrue. Also, the stig allegedly instructs the guest celebrities using a series of clicks and grunts, with an occasional noise that sounds something like "brake here." If that's not enough to put you off, then please, by all means, buy and enjoy this book.

I am loving this book. It's absolutely fun to be reading. Of course, I'm a big fan of the Stig so that makes it even better!

This is fun, but can get tiring if read for too long at once. Better in small doses of a chapter or two at a time. The humor is ridiculous. Everything that happens and everyone portrayed is done equally as unrealistically as the Stig. It can be funny, but after awhile a break is needed.

Absolutely hilarious. This isn't an inside scoop, it's a completely fictitious account that will keep you laughing until the very last page. If you want something accurate, it's best to get Ben Collins' autobiography. This was a great little tale of legend and lore. I loved it!

If you buy this book trying to actually find out who The Stig is, you've missed the point entirely.I haven't even read it but before we criticize it, what's the point of Top Gear? To always be factual? Or to entertain and talk about cars? Moreover, why would the BBC publish a biography of the man/men behind the black/white helmet, the identities of whom they have tried to keep hidden for so long?It's entertainment, get over it. This is Santa Claus to Top Gear fans and we don't want the truth. The identity of Stig is (mostly) a mystery for a reason and people buy into it and enjoy it because it is hilarious and simply too outlandish to be true.If you require answers each time inexplicable event happened on TV, why bother watching? I don't want to have Tarantino tell me what was in the briefcase from Pulp Fiction, or hear Christopher Nolan reveal that the totem actually stopped spinning at the end of Inception.Furthermore, the Stig's character provides the perfect antithesis to the modern day race car driver. Sure, the real men behind the helmet are probably ex GP2/BTCC drivers with houses in Monaco, with penchants for fast cars and faster women. I'm sure you'd rather believe the improvised introductions.If anyone buys this book trying to actually find out who The Stig is, they've missed the point entirely. All we know is, he's called the Stig.

I guess it's humorous. But, really, everything in this book is in the same vein of the "Some say..." introductions used on the show. After the first couple chapters the silliness is a bit tiresome. Really just someone cashing in by riding the coat tails of Top Gear's success. I love the humor of TG. But when someone is trying so hard to pack an entire book full of it, it's really just too much. Ben Collins' book is far more interesting and the humor is genuine.Also, "Simon du Beaumarch" is more than likely Jeremy Clarkson.

A great book about The Stig. Find out everything you ever wanted to know in one well-written masterpiece. Should probably win some sort of award...