Book #3. A Bear Called Paddington, by Michael Bond. Hardcover.
Along with Winnie-the-Pooh, Paddington Bear is the earliest
fictional character that I can remember being a fan of. We got many of his
books from the library growing up, and I always considered myself a fan. And as
I grew older, I found a similar joy in Michael Bond’s delightful Monsieur
Pamplemousse series.
But with a big-budget movie coming out, that doesn’t look all
that promising, I decided to pick up the first book for a nostalgic read. And
what a fun read it was.
Michael Bond has such a light touch with the storytelling,
letting the events just unfold before our eyes. The fact that Paddington is a
bear(much less a talking one) is remarked upon, but never really made a big
deal. It is just the perfect level of surrealism that these stories need. There
is nothing spoon-fed, nothing dumbed-down, just very funny stories. For kids of
any age, including mine.
The eight chapters in the book are basically stand-alone
stories, with just a bit of connection. My favorite stories were “A Bear in Hot
Water,” “A Visit to the Theater,” and “Adventure at the Seaside.” Each of these
shows Paddington interacting with something unusual (a bath, the theatre, and
the beach, respectively), doing his sincere best to handle it, and somehow
overcoming obstacles, with the help of the Browns or another human friend.
Sometimes nostalgia doesn’t work out in the current day. But
in this case, it did. It certainly did.
Source: public library
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