Written by 43 Squadron's intelligence officer, Hector Bolitho, Finest of the Few is full of John's first-hand accounts of his combat missions against German Me 109s, Heinkel 111s and Dorniers. One of Hector's key roles was to collate and verify the 'Combat Reports' filed by pilots which detailed enemy 'kills' and the fate of fellow pilots who had been shot down. He was a good friend of John Simpson and the book was written during 1940 based on conversations between the two men, John's Combat Reports and letters John sent to Hector.