{"product_id":"driving-with-the-devil-southern-moonshine-detroit-wheels-and-the-birth-of-nascar-9781400082261","title":"Driving with the Devil: Southern Moonshine, Detroit Wheels, and the Birth of NASCAR","description":"\u003cb\u003eThe true story behind NASCAR's hardscrabble, moonshine-fueled origins, \"fascinating and fast-moving . . . even if you don't know a master cylinder from a head gasket\" (\u003ci\u003eAtlanta Journal-Constitution\u003c\/i\u003e).\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"[Neal] Thompson exhumes the sport's Prohibition-era roots in this colorful, meticulously detailed history.\"--\u003ci\u003eTime\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eToday's NASCAR--equal parts Disney, Vegas, and Barnum \u0026amp; Bailey--is a multibillion-dollar conglomeration with 80 million fans, half of them women, that grows bigger and more mainstream by the day. Long before the sport's rampant commercialism lurks a distant history of dark secrets that have been carefully hidden from view--until now. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn the Depression-wracked South, with few options beyond the factory or farm, a Ford V-8 became the ticket to a better life. Bootlegging offered speed, adventure, and wads of cash. \u003ci\u003eDriving with the Devil\u003c\/i\u003e reveals how the skills needed to outrun federal agents with a load of corn liquor transferred perfectly to the red-dirt racetracks of Dixie. In this dynamic era (the 1930s and '40s), three men with a passion for Ford V-8s--convicted felon Raymond Parks, foul-mouthed mechanic Red Vogt, and war veteran Red Byron, NASCAR's first champ--emerged as the first stock car \"team.\" Theirs is the violent, poignant story of how moonshine and fast cars merged to create a sport for the South to call its own. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn the tradition of Laura Hillenbrand's \u003ci\u003eSeabiscuit\u003c\/i\u003e, this tale captures a bygone era of a beloved sport and the character of the country at a moment in time.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eNeal Thompson\u003c\/b\u003e is a veteran journalist who has worked for the \u003ci\u003eBaltimore Sun\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003ePhiladelphia Inquirer\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eSt. Petersburg Times\u003c\/i\u003e, and whose magazine stories have appeared in \u003ci\u003eOutside\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eEsquire\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBackpacker\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eMen's Health\u003c\/i\u003e. He teaches at the University of North Carolina-Asheville's Great Smokies Writing Program and is author of \u003ci\u003eLight This Candle: The Life \u0026amp; Times of Alan Shepard, America's First Spaceman\u003c\/i\u003e. Thompson, his wife, and their two sons live in the mountains outside Asheville, North Carolina.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Crown Publishing Group (NY)","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50515084116242,"sku":"9781400082261","price":12.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_85a6fa4d-4319-4e54-ac5c-7782bd1c0881.jpg?v=1730997817","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/driving-with-the-devil-southern-moonshine-detroit-wheels-and-the-birth-of-nascar-9781400082261","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}