Customer comments on this selection.
 American Soul
I found this read to be just great.It gives you a brief history of the begining of the company and brings you right through the culture of the biker and the attraction of the Harley Davidson.A true motorcyclist will be totally engrossed.
 Good Introduction to Bike History
Having started with a minibike at age 5, and eventually moving up through dirt bikes, Japanese bikes and eventually to Harley's by the time I was 30, I wanted to know a bit of motorcycle history. I picked up the book on a whim thinking it would have a good bit of history without taking the rest of my life to read, and wasn't disappointed. The book, though not a detailed account of every facet of motorcycling, served its purpose well. It's a good and entertaining introduction into the history of the Harley Davidson. Several of its points rang true. For instance the fact that Japanese bikes, though undoubtedly technologically superior, just don't have the soul of a Harley sums up the reasons I eventually abandoned the former bikes for the American brand (the difference in price tags had a bit to do with buying one later in life as well, come to think of it). I truly enjoyed the book, and would suggest it to anyone who is looking for an introduction into Harley history.
Take it for a ride
Brock Yates provides a compelling overview of the Harley-Davidson history, and interesting thoughts on what Harley means to America. In some cases his philsophical pronouncements exceed his grasp, and in a few spots he becomes repetitive. Still, as a Harley owner, I greatly enjoyed the book. It does not get mired in tech specs, nor in meaningless detail of the Davidson family lineage. It is definitely not a hagiography -- he strikes the balance between pointing out flaws and giving credit where due. Others here say he stumbled on some history, but I value his writing that quickly moved me from cover to cover. It hits the high spots, and entertainingly tells me more about the Harley company and history than I knew before.
 A journalist wrote this?
Incredible. Almost never has a book shown such a lack of research, and an abundance of inacuraccies.For an author to make such incredible mistakes in his material is bad. For a journalist? Inexcusable. Mr.Yates proved time and time again that his research was lacking. Even without those, Mr.Yates' Holier-than-thou, know-it-all attitude was off-putting at best. For example, a statement which wasn't even related to bikes (about Daytona Bike Week): "A visitor to Bike Week might conclude that this is a lilly white crowd. There are no blacks and no Hispanics, no minorities of any kind." Obviously, ol' Brock has looked at every visitor to Bike Week, and has also asked them all about their lineage. This last statement is so ridiculous, it's almost funny. The only reason I gave this book 2 stars instead of 1 is because some of the pictures were interesting. The text added absolutely nothing of interest, for the innacuracies were just overbearing. Save your money. There are many other books with much more details about the history of Harley-Davidson. I wouldn't consider this one "research"!
 Another author cashing in on us
I would have thought that someone with the credentials of Mr. Yates would have done better. Instead, he serves up a book that is full of errors that should have been corrected with entry-level research. When something as basic as the correct year for the 50th anniversary of Sturgis is mis-stated, the complete lack of any interest in factual information is evident. I would dare say that Mr. Yates would never tolerate repeated mis-statements of fact without researching the subject in his magazine. He should be ashamed of this. Unfortunately, what he have is just another author whipping up a book without regard to content in the sole search for profit. Please don't waste your money as I did.
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