Book Review

Giulia GT Coupe Bertone

Written by Julien Lombard
Published by E-T-A-I, France

when I was growing up, I always had an inkling for Alfa Romeos.  In those days (late ‘60s and ‘70s), when I was a teenager and interested in cars and about to get my driver’s license, I told myself that one day I would own an Alfa Romeo. I have since owned four Alfas, and I even race the ‘73 GTV I currently have. Oddly enough, all of the Alfas I’ve ever owned have been of the GTV Bertone design.

And that’s exactly what this book is about. The French author is specific about this because, not only is he an auto enthusiast, but he also had access to vast collections of Alfas owned by Frenchmen.

I remember once being on a business trip in France when I stopped by an Alfa dealer and showed him a picture of my car. "Ah! C’est un Bertone!" the dealer said. Funny thing—here in the US we normally say Alfa GTV, but in France they make the distinction of this particular Alfa by the designer. I also noticed that they do not say "Pininfarina" when referring to a Spider but instead call it a "cabriolet".

The book is a combination of things and uses: historic explanations that are easy to understand even by non-Alfisti; a nice coffee table book that I am sure will have its pages worn by usage; detailed explanations of the models over the years; Alfa competition and glory; a picture book that small children can drool over; a history book; a book that will be easy reading by novices and experts; and no doubt a grand book of facts about Alfa Romeo.

Depicting Alfa’s presence in France is also very apparent in this book. It’s interesting to note that, when the local press talked about a non-French car, they made sure to make some reference about partisanship (e.g. the big Franco-Italian auto stars, Renault Gordini and Berlina Giulietta). It’s nice to see that Alfa is portrayed and revered outside of Italy. It’s also nice to see how it is revered outside of the US.

The intimate knowledge and relationship this author has with Alfa Romeo is impressive.

Alors, vivre Bertone!

[Please note—this book is currently available only in French (although the photos transcend language barriers). The review copy was submitted by none other than Serge Dermanian, the former proprietor of High Performance Cars, the Alfa Romeo dealer in Waltham, MA before Alfa left our shores in 1995. He’s now residing in France. Stephan was tapped to write this review because 1) he’s such an avid Bertone Alfa enthusiast, and 2) he speaks fluent French! —Ed.]