Ferrari Owner's Club of Great Britain, December 2021
'As an autobiography there's a lot of personal stuff in there, including some wonderfully evocative pictures from the family album, but things get really interesting when Norman took up karting in his teens, before gaining his pilot's license at 17. By that point he had already bought his first car, a Berkeley which was soon replaced by a Messerschmitt. Later would come a Cobra, GT40, Bentley Corniche and a string of Ferraris (250 GT SWB, 500M, 250 GTO), Jaguar D-type along with many more. Unsurprisingly, many of the 272 pages and 290+ images focus on Norman's aviation exploits, especially his AeroSuperBatics team, and it's all the better for that added variety.'
Flyer Magazine, September 2021
'Beautifully illustrated and produced, as well as plenty of coverage of Vic's flying exploits, there's also plenty of vintage and classic car stuff, old motorcycles, and a section on the restoration of the beautiful airfield of Rendcomb, so plenty to keep readers interested!' EH
Flypast, September 2021
'As you'd expect in such a publication, Norman Conquest is beautifully illustrated, adding colour to Vic's remarkable story. It's central theme - a passion for motoring and flying - is proper old school stuff, but if Vic Norman is anything to go by, that old school was definitely the one to go to.'
Aeroplane, July 2021
'Beyond that, what sets Norman Conquest apart from many other aviation memoirs is the quality of its presentation. The larger format allows the most to be made of the image selection, yet the amount of text means this is no cliche alert) coffee-table volume. And those images are superbly reproduced - no tolerance of small, low-resolution scans here.'
Best of British, July 2021
'There are never-ending documentaries on TV about characters who have achieved much less in their lifetimes and this excellently presented book does full justice to a real action hero and a genuine high flyer.'
Pilot, June 2021
'This extensively illustrated autobiography (Vic himself described it to this reviewer as a 'picture book') covers the life of one of GA's great figures.'
'It also has interesting appendices covering AeroSuperBatics personnel, world records and countries the team has displayed in etc. There's even a page of QR codes that take you to various online videos and, at the price. Norman Conquest really is rather good value for money.' PW
Historic Racing News
'However, Vic Norman comes over as a warm and interesting man. Whilst the principal interest in the book for us is his love of automobile exotica, his most proud achievements concern his exploits in the air and in restoring 'planes from boxes of bits to fully airworthy display aircraft.
The story behind setting up the famous AeroSuperBatics team and travelling the world to give air displays is fascinating. Many people will have seen displays performed by his team, featuring glamourous wing-walkers and sponsorship from companies from Crunchie chocolate to Breitling watches.
Beautifully presented by Porter Press, the book is, inevitably, somewhat self serving, which any autobiography is bound to be, but is an insight into 'how the other half lives' and just what can be achieved if you believe that the sky is the limit.'
Alternative Cars
'Vic Norman has led a life that most of us would love to emulate, but one who remains the epitome of cultured, well-mannered Britishness for all his achievements. And his aviation exploits, be it rescuing historically-important aircraft, to the formation of the globally-renowned AeroSuperBatics team. But of greater interest to Alternative Cars readers will be the text dedicated to his enviable car history. Whether it was racing Maserati 250Fs and a Jaguar D-type, or owning a Ferrari 250 GTO, he pretty much did it all.'
'He recalls everything from his first car - a Berkleley which subsequently made way for Messerschmidt, to his more recent interest in hot rods, via a SuperSpeed Ford Escort owned in his youth to other, equally leftfield machines. At £45, it's highly recommended.' Richard Heseltine
Speedreaders
'Well before the pandemic manifested, Vic had thought of putting down details of his incredible life for his family and heirs so had commenced writing—but only sporadically. With personal isolation putting pause to air shows, gatherings and the like, Vic utilized the time turning his full attention to writing. The words, he says, “just started to flow.” With an abundance of fine images from all phases of his life available it soon became a well-illustrated manuscript of 80,000+ words with the UK’s Porter Press expressing interest in publishing. The result is this handsome book and though it is not indexed, Vic did organize several Appendices enumerating various AeroSuperBatics achievements such as world records, recognition of each and every staff member over the decades by name and in chronological order, plus a comprehensive list of its various aircraft. All in all, the book is a quick moving read to be enjoyed just as Vic has, and continues to, enjoy his life.' Copyright 2023 Helen V Hutchings, SAH