Michael Bond (1)Recensioni

"Now, promise me you will write," Aunt Lucy said."I promise to write as soon as I get the chance," said the bear.

Ever since Paddington arrived in England, he has shared his adventures with his aunt Lucy back in Peru. From meeting the Browns to discovering the sights and sounds of London, his letters tell the story of a kind-hearted bear discovering a whole new life--told with love, from Paddington.

What a sweet story!!😊👍 I love to read about bears!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I don't know that I ever actually read any of the Paddington books as a kid. I do remember watching a bit of the tv series. I was pleasantly surprised. This was really good and I imagine as a kid I would've loved it. Paddington is hilarious. I especially liked the theatre chapter - particularly when he freaks out at the idea of paying twenty pence to rent the glasses. And the magic tricks. Mr Curry's watch had me in hysterics. Great story. Looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

Monsieur Pamplemousse is always delightful. This one is no exception. We did have a little trouble understanding Bill Wallis in places. Otherwise a fun adventure!

First sentence: Mr and Mrs Brown first met Paddington on a railway platform.

Premise/plot: Paddington Bear has travelled all the way from darkest Peru (with the blessing of his Aunt Lucy) as a stowaway. This adorable, homeless bear is adopted by the Brown family. Judy and Jonathan are the Brown children; Mrs Bird is the housekeeper. Adventures and misadventures are had: all the time, everywhere he goes. I would say he’s less mischievous than Curious George.

My thoughts: This one was first published in 1958. It easily could have been a part of my mom’s childhood—and its sequels. Mom recently rediscovered this first book at the library. She said I HAD to read it because it’s awesome. She regretted never reading it aloud to us when we were kids. It is a great book. Perhaps not quite as quotable as Pooh, but still quotable. I will definitely be recommending this one.

“It wasn’t so much that he didn’t like baths; he really didn’t mind being covered with jam and cream. It seemed a pity to wash it all off quite so soon.” (27)

“After a few seconds he decided quite definitely that he preferred riding on an escalator. They were nice and smooth. But lifts! To start with, it was full of people carrying parcels and all so busy they had not time to notice a small bear—one woman even rested her shopping bag on his head and seemed quite surprised when Paddington pushed it off. Then suddenly half of him seemed to fall away while the other half stayed where it was. Just as he had got used to that feeling the second half of him caught up again and even overtook the first half before the doors opened. It did that four times on the way down and Paddington was glad when the man in charge said it was the ground floor and Mrs Brown led him out.” (67-8)

Whether you’re a child or an adult, this is one to try if you crave coziness.

Paddington’s an adorable little bear who loves marmalade and mostly abides by his own moral code (minus dodging the truth here and there to cover up some of his unfortunate mishaps). Especially endearing to me were his moments reminiscent of my dog, Paddington’s tendency to tumble into trouble at every turn and make an absolute mess of himself when he eats. I also liked that every now and then Paddington spares a poignant thought for his Aunt living in a retirement home for bears.

If you’d rather not breeze through this in one sitting (which is totally doable), the format here lends itself well to reading a chapter or two a day or before bedtime. The chapters, though connected, unfold like a series of sweet, charming short stories, with a variety of everyday adventures like buying a new coat, a trip to the theater, celebrating a birthday, etc., as Paddington, new to London (from Darkest Peru) is immediately taken in by the patient and kind Brown family who love him like one of their own.

While there’s minimal exploration of supporting characters, if whimsy such as a bear doing the family’s grocery shopping appeals to you, you’ll find much to enjoy here, Paddington has stood the test of time for a reason.½

"Bears like Paddington are very rare," said Mrs. Bird, "and a good thing, too, or it would cost us a small fortune in marmalade."

It's a good thing for lots of reasons that bears like Paddington are rare. Whether it is his attempts at home decorating, detective work, or photography, this bear causes his own special brand of chaos.

Reading level: grade 3-7
Awards: Michael Bond won awards for his work

A cute book about a couple who befriend a bear from Peru at Paddington Station in London. (One must suspend your disbelief for this to work.) Each chapter is a short story involving some sort of crisis involving Paddington, eventually culminating in a happy resolution. Children might find the "formula" comforting but I was hoping for a little more sophistication and variety. I liked the postscript at the end, with Mr. Bond explaining how he came up with the idea for the book.

Rating: 3 stars
Original Publication Date: 1958

I think I read this as a child, but I don't remember it in detail. But I did watch the movie fairly recently, and I was surprised at how many of the beats in the book that the movie hit perfectly - for some reason I just assumed that the movie deviated more from the book.

Paddington Bear introduces the concept of opposites, including on and off, big and small, up and down, in and out, hot and cold, front and back, awake and asleep, full and empty, and straight and crooked.

Oh these are such a delight. In my love of Winnie the Poor, I can occasionally forget Paddington. Which is wrong on my part....he is WONDERFUL.

I didn’t discover these books until I was an adult, but then I was hooked. Paddington is a delightful Bear who unintentionally causes a wide variety of mishaps.

Such fun to make the close acquaintance of Paddington, a bear to whom things happen with somewhat alarming frequency. From the moment the Brown family takes him on, they never know quite what marmalade-enhanced upheaval they will be facing next. It all generally works out well enough in the end.

Really cute Paddington story with counting.

I listened to this on Hoopla for two reasons: First, it is narrated by Stephen Fry, so you know that part will be great. Second, my daughter is going to school in London now and I have been to Paddington Station on several occasions, so this quick introduction to a character I have heard about but never read seemed worthwhile. And it was. Paddington is nothing like his chief bear competition, Winnie the Pooh, nor is he like the Berenstain Bears. Paddington is from Darkest Peru, but his aunt, who is now in a home for retired bears in Lima, has taught him English and recommended he emigrate. There is no word about what happened to Paddington's parents. I suspect either Spanish Conquistadors or the Shining Path had something to do with their disappearance. In any case, Paddington is quickly adopted by the Brown family--a perfect family with a mother, a father, a son, a daughter, and a housekeeper. He is well clothed and fed (especially marmalade) and treated like one of the children. Modern readers may be aghast at how much freedom the Browns give their kids at places like the seaside, where Paddington has one of his adventures, which always seem to turn out okay. There's nothing as quirky or endearing here as Winnie the Pooh and his friends, however. Paddington is a bear, but no one takes too much notice of it, which attests to the diversity of London, even in the 1950s when this was first published. Paddington, the Browns, and Stephen Fry are pleasant companions, so you and your children may enjoy them. There are other volumes that follow, with Fry again providing the narration. Nice for a car trip with small children or if you are hoarse from reading to them yourself.

Da børnene var små, så vi af og til tegnefilm om Bjørnen Paddington. Det var sjovt på en hyggelig og ufarlig måde. Paddington var tilpas nysgerrig og ligefrem til at han kunne stille spørgsmål til alt det, der var selvfølgeligt, men det var altid med udgangspunkt i gængse normer og uden det skær af dybsindighed og absurditet, der f.eks. karakteriserer Peter Plys.

Jeg må også have købt bogen dengang, men vi nåede aldrig at læse den sammen. Til gengæld lignede den et hurtigt afbræk fra de lidt tungere og mere dystre bøger, jeg ellers er i gang med. Historien starter ret uskyldigt. Hr og fru Brown skal hente deres datter, der kommer hjem på ferie fra sin kostskole, og da de går ind på Paddington Station i London, får de øje på en lille bjørn med en kuffert og en gammel hat. Han har et skilt om halsen med en bøn om at passe godt på sig. Familien Brown er venlige mennesker, og de beslutter hurtigt at tage ham til sig.

Efter at have forskrækket taxachaufføren, der ikke er vant til talende bjørne og heller ikke er meget for at få sine nyvaskede sæder beskidte, kommer de hjem i huset. Husholdersken accepterer ham, for han er meget høflig, og da han har fået aftensmad og bliver sendt i bad, demonstrerer han sine evner for at skabe kaos: Vandet kan han ikke slukke, og da han ikke kan bunde mere begynder han at skovle det ud med sin gamle hat. Resultatet er nemt at gætte sig til, men det er Paddington, så rigtig galt går det ikke.

Bogen samler en række andre historier om Paddingtons første tid hos familien Brown. Han rejser med undergrundsbanen, kommer i stormagasin og holder sin fødselsdag.

Det hele er hyggeligt og velfortalt, men det også meget, meget pænt og middelklasseagtigt. Selvom Paddington kommer fra ”det mørkeste Peru” og konstant roder sig ud i mærkelige situationer, så er han høflig og yderst ivrig efter at tilpasse sig sine nye omgivelser. Det bliver også lidt kedeligt og fantasiløst i længden.½

Well, Paddington made a bit more conscious use of his Paddingtonisms (such as painting Mr. Curry's gate with the special antiburglar paint instead of painting his 8 drainpipes when Mr. Curry tried to bully Paddington into doing it for him)... but it was charming to see that Paddington finally had some contact with more of his family. A fitting finish to a beloved series.

Tall-tale telling guinea pig Olga De Polgais a fun companion for a tweeny afternoon, but her exploits sometimes get her in trouble. Still, she's irrepressible.

This review published at The Children's Book and Media Review run by Brigham Young University.

When Mr. Brown announces that the family will be going to France for their summer holiday, Paddington is excited to take his first real holiday, especially when he is put in charge of the itinerary. He decides that going on holiday is a special occasion so he takes money out of the bank, gets stuck talking to customs over some confusion about a passport, makes a meal of escargot for the family, visits a fortune teller, goes fishing, and joins the Tour de France before returning home to London.

This book has a more coherent theme than the other books because the whole book describes Paddington’s adventures getting ready to go to France and then his time there, but each chapter still tells an individual story about things Paddington is doing. No matter where he goes, however, Paddington will always end up in some sort of trouble. Readers will enjoy Paddington’s adventures in a new place and enjoying the holiday with his family.

This review published by Brigham Young University's The Children's Book and Media Review

Paddington can’t seem to stop having misadventures in his life in London. In one adventure, Paddington falls in a river and loses his hat, but manages to rescue it in the end. Paddington attends an auction, tries to make a magazine rack, does laundry, and goes to the cinema for the first time. He even tries to cook dinner and take care of Mr. and Mrs. Brown when they get ill. No matter what he tries to do, Paddington runs into trouble, but always comes out with a positive attitude and a good experience.

These new, brightly colored editions of the Paddington books can help a new generation of readers love the classic stories. Some of the moments are very British and younger readers might need explanations on certain English terms like cinema, but readers who are a little older or reading with their parents will love the adventures that Paddington has. Paddington Helps Out is another classic that children of all ages can enjoy.

This review published by Brigham Young University's The Children's Book and Media Review

Paddington is still living with the Browns and still inadvertently causing a lot of trouble. Although his intentions are always good, his plans always go wrong! Each chapter of the book tells a different story about the charming troublemaker from Darkest Peru. He tries to become a detective, a house painter, a snowbear, and a photographer. He learns about different holiday traditions like Guy Fawkes Day and Christmas, and does his best to adapt to these new ideas. Although he tends to cause trouble, the Brown family is glad to have him around.

This British classic makes a wonderful children’s story. Meant to reflect in some ways the adventures of a child, it is fun to see how a bear gets around in London. Because each chapter is a separate story, it is not necessary to have read the first book in the series. While each chapter would make a great read aloud, the older writing style and British vocabulary of the book might make it more difficult for independent American readers. A beloved English classic, More About Paddington is a great book to get to know the loveable Paddington.

This review was published at The Children's Book and Media Review run by Brigham Young University.

While Paddington is in the garden making a list of all of the nice things about being a bear and living with the Browns, he realizes that one of the nicest things of all is the garden. Jonathan, Judy, and Paddington each have a piece of the garden to take care of, and Paddington discovers that gardening is much harder than it looks. He buys a book and then sits at a high spot so that he can see the garden area from a distance and his jar of marmalade gets covered by construction equipment. With some help from the construction workers, he gets his marmalade back and finds a unique way to make the garden just right for him.

Paddington is back in a usual story about how he accidentally gets into trouble, but does his best to make amends and otherwise fix the situation. This picture book makes Paddington available for fans that are old or young. The illustrations beautifully capture this classic children’s character and his adventure in trying to create the perfect garden. For old fans of Paddington and those new to the adventures of this marmalade-loving bear, Paddington in the Garden will be a delight to read.

The boys didn't find Paddington funny the way I did. When I was young, Paddington would make me laugh till I cried, they barely giggled. I wonder why.

This is a collection of mildly amusing tales about a small bear who comes to live with a family in London.

I recall reading the first book in this series years ago and being just as underwhelmed at the time. Upon my reread I found the title character's antics irritating and quickly lost interest in the book. If I'd read this when I was a child I might have enjoyed it more. I started but did not finish this collection.½