130,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿

Belt Up: Thelwell's Motoring Manual

Brief Description
The artist Norman Thelwell (1923–2004) was famous for his horse and pony cartoons, but his work was far more wide-ranging. He focused his exceptional talent and humour on many diverse subjects, with his witty and wry observations providing amusement and sharp social comment. In this book,... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$4995
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

Norman Thelwell (1923-2004) remains one of Britain's favourite artists and cartoonists. This re-issue is his entertaining look at driving and car ownership.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

The artist Norman Thelwell (1923–2004) was famous for his horse and pony cartoons, but his work was far more wide-ranging. He focused his exceptional talent and humour on many diverse subjects, with his witty and wry observations providing amusement and sharp social comment. In this book, the artist turns his attention to a different form of horsepower—the internal combustion engine.

Belt Up: Thelwell's Motoring Manual depicts the delights and downfalls of driving, car ownership and life on the open road. First published in 1974, this collection of cartoons features driving lessons, road rage, accidents, technical terms, hazards, and the varying temperaments of men and women drivers. Prepare to travel back to an age before electric cars and discover Thelwell's inimitable style and enduring appeal.

AUTHOR: In 1952, Norman Thelwell (1923–2004) penned his first cartoon for the satirical British magazine Punch, renowned internationally for its wit, irreverence, and for publishing the world's best comic writers and poets. This led to a relationship that lasted for 25 years and over 1,000 cartoons, including 60 front covers. Thelwell was a master of sharp social comment and sheer zany humour, and his 34 books have sold millions of copies worldwide and have been translated into numerous languages (thelwell.org.uk).

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781846894244

Publisher: Quiller Publishing Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 14 July 2025

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Quiller Publishing Ltd

Illustration: Cartoons; 150 Illustrations

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 165.0mm

Height: 234.0mm

Weight: 320g

Pages: 128

About the Author

In 1952, Norman Thelwell (1923-2004) penned his first cartoon for the satirical British magazine Punch, renowned internationally for its wit, irreverence, and for publishing the world's best comic writers and poets. This led to a relationship that lasted for 25 years and over 1,000 cartoons, including 60 front covers. Thelwell was a master of sharp social comment and sheer zany humour, and his 34 books have sold millions of copies worldwide and have been translated into numerous languages (thelwell.org.uk).

Also by Norman Thelwell

View all
  • Play It As It Lies
    Play It As It Lies brings together a glorious collection of Thelwell's golfingcartoons.The perfect gift for any golfer who has experienced the horrors of sporting thewrong attire on course, losing his ball, or been wronged by unforgivablegamesmanship. Thelwell guides the reader out of the bunker and onto thefairway.
    Paperback
    $2299
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Three Sheets in the Wind
    Three Sheets in the Wind brings together a glorious collection of Thelwell'ssailing cartoons.Arriving on a summer weekend at any stretch of water without one's own craftbehind the car or swaying proudly at its moorings is like attending a dance witha broken leg - not to mention the damage to one's social status. This is ahumorous manual of instruction for sailors...
    Paperback
    $2299
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Up the Garden Path
    Up the Garden Path brings together a glorious collection of Thelwell's gardening cartoons. This humourous cartoon guide covers all aspects of gardening, from how to make a hole in the frozen fishpond to how to get your mower out of the shed, and includes a calendar of essential work throughout the year.
    Paperback
    $2299
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Pony Panorama
    This omnibus edition—now in hardback—contains much of Norman Thelwell's invaluable advice to aspiring equestrians on how to get into the saddle and stay there; each item illustrated with inimitable and deadly clarity. From the first publication of Angels on Horseback in 1957, the Thelwell pony entered the language—and the libraries of horse-lovers everywhere. The angels in Angels on Horseback are...
    Hardback
    $3995
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Cat's Pyjamas
    Over the centuries, human beings have had such a passion for cats that not only have they invaded our homes—occupying the sunniest corners and sitting on the softest mats they can find—they have also invaded our language. Norman Thelwell's collection of drawings is a celebration of this. From The Cat's Whiskers and Scaredy cat to Cat's Paw and Cat Nap,...
    Paperback
    $2995
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Compleat Tangler
    The Compleat Tangler brings together a glorious collection of Thelwell's fishing cartoons. What do fishermen really get up to when they abandon a warm bed before the crack of dawn, stuff a haversack with tins of assorted maggots, half a hundredweight of pulped bread and a folding campstool, and disappear into the drizzle? Thelwell presents his report.
    Paperback
    Sold Out

More from Humour

View all
  • Me vs Brain
    The hilarious book from TikTok and Insta sensation, Hayley Morris Brain - No one's going to buy your book Me - But it's good! My editor says so! Brain - Well she would, wouldn't she... Btw, didn't you leave your hair straighteners on? Me - I can't get into this now, I've got a book description to write Hello! Hayley...
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $3000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • What A Way To Go
    The Million Copy #1 Bestselling Author of How to Kill Your Family is back with the new book of the moment. Featured in Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Sunday Times Style, You Magazine… 'Super-sharp, lethally witty' - NIGELLA LAWSON 'Delicious' - JOJO MOYES 'Very funny… I inhaled it' - JOE LYCETT ‘Taut, pacy, seamless… a huge pleasure to read’ - MARIAN KEYES ‘I...
    Paperback
    $3699
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • New Release
    The Killer Isn't Alice
    46,600 SUSPECTS. 18 CLUES. 1 KILLER. CAN YOU SOLVE THE CRIME? Test your detective skills in the addictive murder mystery puzzle book sensation - newly revised and expanded. Now with updated graphics, a brand-new culprit, and a never-before-seen, thrilling bonus puzzle. Alice Starling is missing. In her apartment, the police find three things: A DEAD BODY A CRYPTIC NOTE A...
    Paperback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Murdoku
    Place the suspects, reveal the killer! An innovative puzzle book that incorporates murder mysteries with sudoku-like logic. An addictive mix of cosy crime and colourful grid logic puzzles. These visually appealing, addictive puzzles drop solvers into immersive mini murder mysteries, combining the elegant simplicity of games like sudoku with the storytelling of classic logic problems. But Murdoku introduces its own...
    Paperback
    $3899
    Elsewhere:
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • The Gate of the Feral Gods
    The fourth book in the explosive LitRPG Dungeon Crawler Carl series New Achievement! Total, Utter Failure.You failed a quest less than five minutes after you received it. Now that's talent. Surviving in a multilevel dungeon that also happens to be the set of the galaxy's most watched game show has taught Coast Guard vet Carl and his ex-girlfriend's cat, Princess...
    Hardback
    $6000
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Murdoku Volume 2: Back In Time
    Sudoku meets murder mystery in a time-travelling puzzle adventure, with 80 full-colour immersive cases spanning some of history's most thrilling eras. Unravel crimes across time in Murdoku Volume 2: Back in Time, where sudoku-style logic meets gripping murder mysteries. Each full-colour puzzle drops you into a vivid crime scene, challenging you to use the visual and verbal clues provided to...
    Paperback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Kitchen Confidential
    The classic bestseller from the star of Parts Unknown and No Reservations: 25th Anniversary edition, with a new introduction by Irvine Welsh. BEFORE THERE WAS THE BEAR, THERE WAS BOURDAIN. ‘Elizabeth David written by Quentin Tarantino’ — A.A. Gill ‘Fantastic: as lip-smackingly seductive as a bowl of fat chips and pungent aioli’ — Daily Telegraph After twenty-five years of sex,...
    Paperback
    $2500
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • How to Kill a Guy in Ten Dates
    A hilarious, swoony and downright terrifying horror romance in which a cinephile gets caught in the middle of a murder spree at a speed-dating event and must use her encyclopedic knowledge of the rom-com and horror genres to make it as a real-life Final Girl. When cinephile Jamie Prescott attends a speed-dating event, she expects to meet some mediocre men...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • New Release
    The Correspondent
    84 Charing Cross Road meets A Man Called Ove in this Radio 2 Book Club pick—a heartwarming, witty story about the life of an extraordinary woman, told through her letters. In her letters to family and friends, we come to know the life of Sybil Van Antwerp—stubborn, cantankerous, opinionated, always steadfast in her belief in the power of the written...
    Paperback
    $2199
    Elsewhere:
    $2800
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Women's Prize Winner
    The Correspondent
    84 Charing Cross Road meets A Man Called Ove in this heartwarming, witty story about the life of an extraordinary woman, told through her letters. In her letters to family and friends, we come to know the life of Sybil Van Antwerp—stubborn, cantankerous, opinionated, always steadfast in her belief in the power of the written word. But as the clock...
    Paperback
    $2999
    Elsewhere:
    $3700
    (6)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Minute Cryptic
    Welcome to your brand-new wordplay obsession. From the creators of the hugely popular online puzzle platform, Minute Cryptic, comes this step-by-step guide to solving cryptic crosswords. With over 160 different clues for you to solve, each chapter takes you through a different wordplay concept essential for unlocking cryptic crossword clues. As you complete the book, you'll build your skills and...
    Paperback
    $2799
    Elsewhere:
    $3600
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • The Butcher's Masquerade
    The fifth book in the explosive LitRPG Dungeon Crawler Carl series Attention. The gates are down. The hunters are loose. Run. A deadly jungle. Bloodthirsty dinosaurs. A fallen princess seeking revenge. And a mysterious celebration known as The Butcher's Masquerade. Coast Guard veteran Carl and Princess Donut think they've seen everything the galaxy's favorite game show can throw at them-until...
    Hardback
    $6000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.