Mauro Forghieri interview

The editor is a very important one in Italy, I work for this company as a freelance illustrator.
Nothing is connected with Ignazio Giunti, but it is ever a nice idea to remember this unluky and brave italian driver.
I just buy a replica of his helmet some days ago trougth e-bay, another way to remember..
Alessandro

 

I spoke to them thanks to the Ingegnere, they were very cordial and are sending me a copy of the book, am really curious to read it.

best regards,

Marc

 

It would be hard do do a bad interview of him.

best regards,

Marc

 

The Scuderia Ferrari 1929 to 1939 by Luigi Orsini & Franco Zagari was translated by Doug Nye quite well. Recently we've also had some English editions of Delage La Belle Voiture Francaise and Amilcar by Fournier, so it is possible.

Anything like 'La Sport E I Suoi Artigiani' in English would be so incredible.

 

How is your Italian? Perhaps you are the one who could do an English language version of it?

 

Six hard but enjoyable months in Modena in 2006 (indexing a huge private photo archive...in Italian) have reaped their reward thank you and every time I visit I seem to speak better and better, what makes it easier is that they encourage you whereas some other countries a bit north of there will say nein! Ve better shpek English ya! if you don't speak perfect German (I have many German friends just teasing!). If I am good at anything other than driving it is languages as I have lived in 8 countries and had to deal with three languages at the age of 4. Don't ask me to count however: I hate numbers!

I am in talks with Giunti right now regarding precisely this, thanks to the Ingegnere who it seems enjoyed the interview and is happy with how it came out. What I am interested in would not just be a translation but adding (if and where applicable) interviews of people worlwide who were professionally close to the Ingegnere and who may not have been interviewed in the Italian version.

I would also want to track down a great variety of photos, for example when I lived in Silverstone during my racing days 20 years ago my parents when they would visit stayed in this countryside hotel with a restaurant in its basement, there hung on the walls were photos of the whole Ferrari team having dinner in the late sixties with Ing. Forghieri much in evidence, this is now a private home but I would certainly ask them for use of the photos.

This book done to its full potential could be something truly special.

Giunti is sending me one or two copies so I can assess the book as it is for them but their warehouse was closed due to inventory etc etc, these delays are normal in Italy so they are on the way.

best regards,

Marc

 

I am glad to hear this all of this and I hope you choose to take the project to its final conclusion. There seems to be a good market for Ferrari related titles and Forghieri is certainly a player in the story that has been underexplored thus far.

 

-I fully agree¨

best regards,

Marc

 

link please!

 

I can pigeon my way though Italian, but it would be nice if compaies did books in English AND Italian; therefore no reason to do two versions...there have even been books published in English, Italian, and German in a single book!

 

I have been pushing Andrea Curami (one of the authors of "La Sport") to get Nada to do it in English for 3 years....nothing yet.


A "reissue", updated version of Scuderia Ferrari would also be great (like Simon Moore's "reissue" of the 8c2900 book)...in English of course


PS:
Richard, if you want me to "translate" anything from "La Sport", please e-mail me at [email protected] Italian isn't great, but I DO know the etceterinis as well as anyone in the world...

 

Hi Stu
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Nathan

 

Dr Schaller:

hope you are well.

Actually books in two -or three- languages are very unpopular with readers and also with publishers. The reason is simple: the buyer is paying for half the book, the rest is redundant. Personally I hate the idea because it means I would have to cut my text significantly short.

Of the three books I am involved in only one, as things stand right now, will have a version in another language other than English and both my publishers in French and English agree that to do a book in two languages would be a bad idea. There is the problem of distribution and mailing the heavy things as well. You can however to some extent use the graphics i.e. the page presentation, choice of photos and I am trying to convince my English language publisher to let the French one do the graphics as they are far more pleasing to the eye. There is however a caveat: French is 30% longer by nature so you have to take that into account if you don't want to cut corners -which I won't- if using the exact same page layout.

I believe that with recent progress in layout and printing and the clear fact that on demand publishing has now solved its previous low quality issues multi language books will go the way of the dodo. I do not however like the idea of electronic books at all: I want to hold the real thing in my hands!

best regards,

Marc

 

Mon Amis Marc:

I respectfully disagree. I don't mind paying the extra money, and having two or 3 languages side by side helps me actually learn the languages other than English (although I an pretty fluent in French; I just never get to use it here in Portland, Oregon...when I go back to France it comes back in a matter of a day or two..)

 

Marc,
I, also, do not mind a book with multiple languages. Especially in a book that is predominantly pictures, anyway.

George

 

Marc,

I can deal with the multiple languages if it means that a book of significance can be published in English. I'll even accept the layout gyrations to get the text length differences for different languages accomodated.

What I won't accept is all this for a book that offers no new information or insight; the churned out mass market Ferrari books that believe there is a ready market for anything with Ferrari in the title.

Jeff

 

Well three in disagreement, I guess I should go stand in the corner facing the wall

I must say I am suprised that you don't mind these double language books.

Dr Schaller: yes you make a good point that one can sharpen linguistic skills like that but then there are other means to do so, I gather there are now bilingual novels for that purpose, which would help. You are right it is about practice, my Swedish, German or Portuguese are very limited right now but two weeks there and it is back to fluency...or almost.

GGJJR: You are right for a photo book with basic short text and captions: it works. We are however certainly not discussing photo books here, to be perfectly candid unless talking of rare photos not seen in decades there are dozens of people on Fchat in the historic section who could have done books like that...20 years ago.

The books we are concerned with here have a lot of text: one of those I have finished and which will be out in the next few months has 120000 words of interview and 37000 words of text. If you want to do a book with two languages then...you go from 157000 to 314000, so does the number of pages and so does the price...not so good.

-Jeff: absolutely we don't need more useless books with no primary research that rehash the same old information and use the same old photos we have seen over and over again.

One of the things I really love is to interview someone who has never been interviewed yet lived a significant part of the topic: then you really get interesting quotes and viewpoints.

Anyway just my 2 cents, what do I know there are people who have forgotten more than I will ever know!

The Forghieri bio has arrived in my mailbox will let you know what I think after the weekend.

best regards,

Marc

 

As a writer and publisher I have to say that I agree with Marc. Double and triple language books are generally not well received, for the reasons that Marc has explained.
But, back on topic, I look forward to your comments after you've had time to view the Italian book. If it does get done in English let's hope that they do away with the photo centre section and put the photos in the text where they should be.
Nathan

 

Thanks Nathan: I feel better not being the only one thinking that way and yes a photo center section sounds a tad old fashioned.

Am going to get the book right now!

best regards,

Marc

 

Sounds brilliant.

 

Marc,
I was specifically thinking of Making a Difference when writing that. There is so much information that I think I need to read it again, and again, for that matter. I actually wish that more photos had been included in that set.

George

 

Hello Richard: yes but when you are doing the work it doesn't: the reality of book work is endless hard work you want to bite the desk or the laptop Luckily I did it -the translating transcribing work for the interviews not biting anything!-in Ft Lauderdale in the winter of 2007-2008 while biking at least 20 kilometers a day, a total of at least 1000kms in 2,5 months that helped a lot to offset the tedium. The last winter, a cold one in Burgundy I wasn't nearly as productive...so it is back to Florida next winter!

best regards,

Marc

 

Hello George:

I haven't seen making a difference so could not comment. I guess the perfect balance between photos and text is very elusive: right now for my Maserati the Citroen years book I have 3226 photos: I don't even want to think about the time this fall when I have to choose....

best regards,

Marc