Vespa Related Books
The number of little scooters seen with each title below is my personal rating for the book, and is subject to my
tastes only. The more scooters, the better I like it; I'll try and
tell you why whenever possible. Because so many of the books are in
languages I don't read, I often prefer books with uncommon pictures and cool bikes.
Prices are usually stated in the currency in which I paid along with a guesstimate in U.S. dollars, your mileage may vary.
I don't have thumbnails scanned for all of these yet, but I'll keep after it.
Don't forget ot check out the magazines page.
Vespa, by Dieter Struss. In German.
An overview of vintage Vespas and accessories, primarly from the collection of Robin Davy of München.
It contains some incredible photos of rare items and rarer German Vespas. A very expensive must-have book.
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore, see information below. L 130.000 (about US $80)
Chi Vespa Mangia Le Mele: Storia Della Vespa, In Italian or German. An overview of Vespa by model. Well organized with some rare shots of early prototypes and drawings.
Available at the First Kick Scooters, see information below. L 70.000 (about US $45)
la Vespa ...E tuttii Suoi Vespini, by Stefano Biancalana and Michele Marchiano. In Italian.
A beautiful new book featuring new photos of rare models, color reporductions of vintage advertising,
a listing of Vespa production by model per month through 1956!, and more. A new must have!
Available at the First Kick Scooters, see information below. US $25
Vespa: Histoire Et Technique, by Jean Goyard and Bernard Salvat, Et Les Annees De Charme, by Jean Goyard, Dominique Pascal, and Bernard Salvat (two volume box
set). In French. An awesome two volume set containing unusual photos and European ad layouts from 4 decades. (look for the glaring error on page 77!)
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore, see information below. L 130.000 (about US $84)
Vespa: An Illustrated History, by the late Eric Brockway. In English. An excellent review of the Douglas Vespa and the early days of U.K. scootering by someone who was a part of it all.
Available at the First Kick Scooters and the Motorbooks International catalog, see information below. L 32.000 (about US $20)
Vespa Mi' Amore, by Ulrich Kubisch. A big book with lots of good and rare pictures. In German.
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore, see information below. L 68.000 (about US $44)
Vespa Motoroller 1948-1986, by Walter Zeichner. In German. Great accessory photos and lots on information on German produced Vespas.
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore, see information below. L 30.000 (about US $20)
Vespa Bella Donna, by Peter Roos. In German. A collection of vintage Vespa calendar art paired with the authors thoroughly obsessed views.
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore, see information below. L 60.000 (about US $40)
Vespa Stracciatella, by Peter Roos. In German. A special point of view on Vespa from the man who authored Vespa Bella Donna.
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore, see information below. L 60.000 (about US $40)
Deutsche Motoroller 1949/73: Von Achilles Und Durkopp Bis Victoria Und
Zundapp, , by Ulrich Kubisch. In German. A great overview of all German scooter makes, with some rare photos.
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore, see information below. L 45.000 (about US $29)
Illustrated Motorscooters Buyers Guide, by Michael and Eric Dregni. In American. A well researched encyclopedia of scooters, concise and largely comprehensive.
Available at the First Kick Scooters and the Motorbooks International catalog, see information below. L 42.000 (about US $27)
Scooters!, by Michael and Eric Dregni. In American. A great follow up by the Dregni brothers, an expansive discussion of all scooter makes with some rare information and photos of American scooters.
Available at the First Kick Scooters and the Motorbooks International catalog, see information below. L 42.000 (about US $27)
The Colour Vespa Family Album, by Andrea and David Sparrow. In English. An attractive collection of Vespa photos all taken recently in a variety of beautiful European venues.
Available at the First Kick Scooters and the Motorbooks International catalog, see information below. L 42.000 (about US $27)
Piaggio Vespa File, In Japanese. A catalog/magazine/vintage Vespa pictorial. Beautiful and rare (a friend found mine in Japan, now available by mail order from Italy!)
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore, see information below. L 55.000 (about US $38)
Vespa Style Handbook, and Vespa Style Handbook II In Japanese. Two volumes of catalog/magazine/vintage Vespa pictorial. Rare.
Don't know where you'll find these, I got the first one from First Kick Scooters and the second was brought back from Japan, you might try mail order from Honorary in Tokyo, see information below. L 40.000 (about US $24)
Scooter Boys, by Gareth Brown. In English. I used to have this book, but I can't find it so I'll have to scan the thumbnail shot from Scootering magazines mail order
section. A history and evolutionary overview of the Scooter Boy (through the mid 80's) from one who was a part of it all.
A really good read at a good price. It was once difficult to obtain
outside of the U.K. but is now available from the folks at Scootering. £ 9.50 (about US $15)
Scooters De Chez Nous, In French. A short book from France, I don't own it so I can't yet review it.
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore, see information below. L 77.000 (about US $50)
Scooters Made In Italy, by Vittorio Tessera. In Italian. A great reference for the many makes of Italian scooter, it seems every Italian company tried their hand at a scooter in the 50's.
Available at the First Kick Scooters, see information below. 49.000 (about US $32)
Motor Scooters, by Mike Webster. In English. This is the first book
on the subject that I ever came across. I just recently gave it a re-read
and was surprised that I'd forgotten how good it is. Small and inexpensive,
this pocket guide offers a well written concise history covering a century of
motorscooters. It includes black and white photos of dozens of obscure
makes, as well as a nice review of the more popular makes.
Mikes personal collection, and his studied commentary, are often featured on the
pages of Scootering magazine. A great bargain and a must have.
Available by mail order from Scootering, see information below. £ 3 (about US $5)
Piaggio, a newsletter/magazine published by the Piaggio Company. This monthly newsletter was
published by the Piaggio Company starting in January of 1949.
It was published into the 60's at a minimum, but
I'll have to do some additional research to determine if or
when publication ceased. The first ten issues are available as
color copies (excellent quality,) from Scootermania. The magazine
contains rare photos and early ad layouts that will thrill the avid
collector. Available from Scootermania, see information below. US $65.00 for the set (+ US $9 Shipping)
Tous Les Scooters Du Monde, by Jean Goyard and Dominique Pascal. In French. A large comprehensive guide to scooters of all makes, some great full page color photos.
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore, see information below. L 60.000 (about US $40)
Vespa Story (video), specify PAL or NTSC, German, Italian or English).
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore and by mail order in Scootering magazine, see information below. L 39.000 (about US $25,
the English language and NTSC versions usually go for more, about $US 45)
Lambretta Story (video), unsure of availability of formats or languages,
PAL/Italian for sure, you could have it converted to NTSC, that's what I did
with Vespa Story before it was available in NTSC/English).
Available at the Automobile Club of Italy bookstore, see information below. L 39.000 (about US $25)
Ordering Information
First Kick Scooters, 647 7th Street, San Francisco, CA, 94103. (415) 861-6100, FAX (415) 861-7198.
Automobile Club of Italy (ACI) Bookstore, Libreria
dell'Automobile Corso Venezia 43, 20121 Milano (MI), Italy. 011 392 76006624, they'll
take credit card orders in english by FAX at 011 392 27301454
Motorbooks International, P.O. Box 1, Osceola, WI, 54020.
Scootering Magazine, P.O. Box 46, Weston-super-Mare, Avon BS231AF, U.K.
Scootermania, 3235 Byron Street, San Diego, CA, 92106, (619) 223-7246.
Honorary, a Japanese scooter shop, phone 03-5380-9751.
