★★★★★ | Alfa Romeo Giulietta 1978 – 1985
For any Alfa Romeo fan or ‘Alfisti’ as they call themselves, Matteo Licata’s book on the much ignored Giulietta from 77 – 85 is an absolute must. I like the Giulietta and have looked forward to reading a copy since he broadcasted it to his Twitter followers this year.
Matteo is a lover of sports cars in general and he has a fondness for automotive lost causes. Full-time lover of good life, blogger and writer on Twitter, he’s an automobile enthusiast firstly. He carved a career in car design, graduating from Turin’s Istituto Europeo di Design in 2006. He’s even contributed to the 2006 Giulietta of 2010. So we are in good hands.
The Giulietta, in general, has been largely overlooked. It was for Alfa Romeo, a short-lived car and as a result has only ever been mentioned in a paragraph or berated for being a cheaper shorter car based on the Alfetta. One of my first books on cars was on Alfa Romeo and that only had a one-page colour spread with two shots of a Giulietta on it. This has finally been addressed.
This is Matteo’s first book and l have to say l am impressed with the level of information this book is packed with. As a general rule of thumb, most books on Alfa Romeo are rich in page numbers. For the 58 pages in Matteo’s book, each page packs a punch with knowledge on the Giulietta. It comes in bite-size snippets of information and it works for me. The book is particularly good at capturing the data that you as an enthusiast want without waffle.
In the beginning, there was a lovely snapshot of the history of Alfa Romeo. Even after all these years of being an ‘Alfisti’ myself, some of it was new news to me. After this, there are eight chapters covering everything from the launch to evolution and ending with the geeky satisfaction in vital statistics.
Things l had forgotten about Giulietta (read that as didn’t know) was that there were three series in production. Subtle changes here and there are covered along with the confusing array of engine line-ups across Italy and the rest of Europe. And then there are rare photos throughout the book of the car itself including six very rare and spacial models like the Fiorucci Giulietta “Punk” of ’78. It beggars belief!
A worthy read and addition to your Alfa Romeo library? YES.
Follow Matteo on twitter: @Roadster_life or on his blog: https://www.roadster-life.com
Available from Amazon books for £21.87.
Motoring nurse or medical motorist? It's a difficult one. By day l nurse and by night l drive.
Fingers have always been grease deep in attending the motoring of an ageing fleet. And now l write about new and old.
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