Small Wonder: The Amazing Story of the Volkswagen Beetle

by Walter Henry Nelson

Book Overview

The author recounts the fascinating history of the "beetle." How the German auto manufacturers under Hitler tried to test the VW to death. How a colorful, controversial supersalesman from Germany... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0837601479
• ISBN13: 9780837601472
• Release Date: January 1965
• Publisher: Bentley Publishers
• Length: 378 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.5" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Extremely insightful on a car that shaped the industry.

Just what I was looking for, and then some. This book starts at the very beggining, with the Beetle's mentor and VW's founder Dr. Porsche. (Did you know he was Czeck?)It follow's the company's history (which is to say, the car's history) with just the right amount of coverage to its amazing journey from WWII to the car's EOP (end of production) in Puebla, Mexico. The cronology of this book is excellent. Worthdly of a movie script, this book is extremely enganging. As you read its history, names like Ford, Peugeot, Renault amongst others keep poping up narrating each one's influence on the company's history. (Did you know H. Ford II was offered the factory, for free?)The only thing that I'd wish from this book was to have the author do either a follow up or a revised update. This book finishes with the beetle's last production car, but the company has certantly not. I wish I could get more info from the company's developement from that point forward, including the launch of the new beetle among other superb new VWs...

Small Wonder- Great result

On of the world`s most informative and well resourced books on the VW history.Gives an insight to the early vehicle development,political hurdles that had to be overcome as well as the generic industrial resistence that was present.H.Nelson, a gifted author,not only writes about the "first row" people but also about production personnel and production techniques.Sales and marketing development & especially how the U.S. market was won not only fascinates the VW buff but everyone who ever had anything to do with the automotive industry.

The best for early Volkswagen history

I had to read this book for my senior project this year. It was my best source for the history section. Too bad the book dosn't go farther than the sixties.

A Must Read for Any Auto Enthusiast

I first read this book in 1979 when I borrowed it from the Public Library. I'm glad to see it being reprinted, although I'd rather see it in hardback. This the really story about Herbie, the little car that could.

The only story of the history of VOLKSWAGEN

This book starts with the early beginings of Ferdinand Porsch and relates the entire story of his career as an auto maker , then as the father of the VW beetle. This is the most complete accounting on the involvement of Adolph Hitler and the Nazi party through the war years, and the saving of the factory by the British Army and Major Ivan Hirst. This book also tells the story of Heinz Nordhoff,President of VW from 1946 till his death in 1967. He is the man rsponsible for the VW Beetle becoming the most manufactured car in world history