Recommended reading - The Wages of Fear (1950):

The Wages of Fear

Original title: Le Salaire de la peur.

By Georges Arnaud.

Originally published in 1950.

This English language translation edition was published in 1968.

Paperback.

Avon edition.

ASIN: B000VDT4KS

Description:

Las Piedras, beaching port. There are hundreds of them, coming from who knows where, to forget the impasse of their existence in the tropics. For a handful of dollars, these low-rankers are ready to do anything. Ready to face kilometers of impassable track, behind the wheel of a dilapidated truck, to transport nitroglycerin. At the slightest deviation, at the slightest shock, it is death. An epic of pure anguish...

Book cover artwork from other editions:

On this day in movie history - The Wages of Fear (1953):

The Wages of Fear

French title: Le Salaire de la peur,

directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot,

written by Henri-Georges Clouzot and Jérome Geronimi,

based on the novel by Georges Arnaud,

was released at the Cannes Film Festival in France on April 15, 1953.
Music by Georges Auric.

Cast:
Yves Montand, Charles Vanel, Folco Lulli, Peter van Eyck, Véra Clouzot, William Tubbs, Darío Moreno, Jo Dest, Antonio Centa, Luis De Lima, Grégoire Gromoff, Josep Palau i Fabre, Faustini, Seguna, Darling Légitimus, René Baranger, Pat Hurst, Evelio Larenagas, Jeronimo Mitchell, Ricardo, François Valorbe, Rico Zermano.