There are books about cars, people, speed and movies, but none brings all those concepts together more passionately than Fr?d?ric Brun?s new book, Steve McQueen: A Passion for Speed. ?A frugal use of words introduces a pursuit of speed, the body of a tuned machine, the movies, a passion for racing and the famous McQueen garage, but each of the 160 photos amplifies the life of the man that became and remains an icon for cool. ?The photos do a great job describing the man.

McQueen may have died a premature death 31 years ago, but his ?coolness? lives on, as is showcased in this book. ?

Author Fr?d?ric Brun is a foremost political attach? in the French Parliament and a movie lover, car fanatic and amateur racer.? He contributes to a number of French magazines writing about movie icons or collector cars.

The book is a 9.6-inch by 10.8-inch format hardcover of 192 pages and is available for $40 at book stores or on line from the publisher Motorbooks, a division of Quayside Publishing Group.? Their website is www.motorbooks.com.