Few cars can be quite so taken for granted as the venerable Volvo estate, a situation that self-confessed enthusiast Ashley Hollebone seeks to change with the new study, subtitled 'Design Icon & Faithful Companion'. He Succeeds, too: it's an engaging history, covering every model from the Duett to the latest V90 in depth , made al the more so by the excellent supply of images (many never-before published) from Volvo Heritage. Overall this is a worthy celebration of the breed, with useful facts including production numbers. - Classic and Sports Car. To devote a book to a car that was neither a style icon nor had any sporting pretensions is an original idea, and author Ashley Hollebone pulls it off, entertainingly demonstrating how the Volvo estate worked its way into so many owners affections. The work is very well illustrated, making imaginative use of the company's PR archive and Hellebore's upbeat, conversational style makes it an easy read. - Kieron Fennelly. A homage by author Ashley Hollebone to what everyone in the UK who is uninitiated in Volvo lore imagines to be the sole purpose of the marque. His text in informative. The good thing about this book is that you can pick it up, put it down, and then go back to it to discover more of interest thank to all those previously unseen pictures dating back to the first Volvos and the PV657 that predates the more familiar PV445. If Volvo courses through you veins and fills your bookshelves, here's another for your library. - Volvo Driver. Ashley Hollebones detailed history of the Volvo estate car gives this using hero the credit it deserves. The first Volvo went on sale in 1927, and the book covers models right up to the V90. This book offers an informative insight in to a car that receives very little media attention despite its vast success and the great affinity to holds with to many. Hollebone separates the book into 19 easy-to-follow chapters, each dedicated to a model series, ensuring the reader can clearly differentiate between them. His text includes production figures for all estate car models, and is carefully complemented by over 300 pictures, featuring never-seen-before images from Volvo's archives. Safety, among other things was one of the main focuses of Volvo, and Hollebone homes in on this. Nils Bohlin, the inventor of the seat belt, was commissioned by the manufacturer to work on the development of this safety device. Volvo was also the first company to fit seatbelt as standard, an invention that has saved over one million lives in its existence. If you are looking to discover more about this iconic vehicle, or have a passion for cars in general, then this is the book for you.- Hagerty Classic Cars Newsletter. Fans of the great old British TV series The Good Life will recall that Margot and Jerry owned a Volvo estate car. Somehow, it seemed to fit the image (aspiring suburbanite or antique dealer) that has often accompanied these models. Yet, as this enjoyable new book from Veloce shows, there's a lot more than that to these sturdy and often stylish Swedes. With 160 pages, plenty of photos mostly drawn from Volvo sources, I imagine, and some terrific period adverts, author Hollebone has provided a very readable look at the classic Swedish estate that has sold in the millions.- New Zealand Classic Car. In the (American) film the sympathetic outsiders often drive a Volvo and then a station wagon. The Swedish combination - from the PV 444 Duett to the V90 - is a practical, reliable and safe companion for the individualist. All this is dedicated to this book. On 150 pages with a good 300 illustrations the books in handy format tells us the full-stranded story of these vehicles, which already today many times use collector status. - Austro Classic. This booklet tells the story of many photos of the world's most popular station wagon. The first pages are dedicated to the creation of Volvo and from page 24 the party begins with the Duett and ends with the V90. The P1800 ES also calculates the stations. Here and there some special versions and at the 850 attention to the racing. All in all, a fun and informative overview of the family favourite. - Klassiek & Techniek. It was - and still is - a Swedish totem much loved by the British. And it managed to shake off an image landed on it courtesy of motoring journalists with much to prove. Step forward the Volvo estate, once referred to as antique cars for antique dealers, but in that jibe was the hidden acknowledgement to a respectable Britsin's middle- and upper-classes sought in their estate cars. Author Ashley Hollebone takes us back to Volvo's earliest days when it offered saloons but no estate derivatives, although by the mid- to late-1920s vans, based on the car chassis, were available. This is a first-rate book that achieves something unusual with a motoring title, in that it appeals to both the enthusiast and the casual observer, it reads well, is pleasingly laid out, has plenty of illustrations and is good value. And at a time when far too many car buyers are obsessed with brand and associated perceptions over quality, Volvo successfully ploughs its own furrow, and this title rightfully celebrates that. Highly recommended. - on-magazine.co.uk. This excellent marque history plugs a gap and sets the record straight about a brand that is synonymous with utility almost to the point of anonymity. - Big End/All Torque. Ashley Hollebone has produced this fine historical hard back record of the Volvo estate in this Veloce published book. Through the 19 chapters details and pictures if each individual estate model flows through from page to page, culminating with the V90, which boasts the "Made in Sweden" motto. Some of the photos featured have not been published before, thanks to contributions from the Volvo Heritage Archives. - Fleet Transport Magazine. This big Swedish icon is at long last celebrated in a fine book from Ashley Hollebone, who explains how the Volvo estate paved the way for safe, spacious and dependable cars capable of withstanding Scandinavian winters and many generations of families. - Practical Classics. The Volvo Estate Car: Design Icon & Faithful Companion represents the first historic publication so specifically focus, and it's a delightful read. You don't have to be a die hard Volvo lover to appreciate the traditional appeal of these safe Swedish haulers, but if you are, you'll love this book. - Hemmings Motor News. I can highly recommend adding this book to your Volvo collection, just for the fantastic pictures alone! - Volvo Club of Victoria.