The Green Helmet (novel)

Brothers Ham and Taz Rafferty are professional race car drivers whose father was killed during the Mille Miglia, a 1000-mile endurance race through Italy. The boys' mother extracts a promise from Taz that he will allow Ham to drive while he bides his time. But tension builds between the two when Ham refuses to retire after a near-disaster. An American tire manufacturer contracts Ham to race on his tires and a romance ensues between Ham and the American's daughter. ==Background==

Cleary had written a book about Australian politics, ''The Mayor's Nest'', but his English publisher was worried it would not appeal to an international audience, and suggested a book on motor racing. ==Publishing history==

After its initial publication in UK by Collins in 1957, • 1963, Australia, Howitz • 1970, UK, Collins • 1988, UK, Fontana ==Critical reception==

The book became a best seller on its publication in 1957. Cleary says Reader's Digest paid an advance of 20,000 pounds for their editions. Kirkus Reviews was not impressed with the work: "Superb suspense in the racing aspects; the romance is contrived and two-dimensional." A reviewer in The Bulletin found a lot more to like about the author's "swift and clear presentations of scenes in high-class English pubs, New York pent-house apartments, American factories, English country places! Writers with more to say, or less, might well admire the hard-gained discipline of his writing." ==Film adaptation==

The novel was adapted as a film of the same name in 1961, directed by Michael Forlong with a screenplay by Jon Cleary. ==See also==