Paddington at Large

Michael Bond's Paddington at Large is a laugh-out-loud set of home-grown disasters for 7 year olds, all starring a bear who simply can't say no to a job.

What happens

Book five finds things suspiciously peaceful at Windsor Gardens. Paddington has taken up gardening. His patch is bursting with flowers and huge marrows, and he sells his vegetables to Mrs Bird at proper market rates (keeping his own careful accounts, of course).

Then Mr Curry leans over the fence. He'd like a few apples picked for five pence. Oh, and a branch sawn off while Paddington's up there. And the grass cut, if he's got a moment.

So Paddington does it all very carefully, with the rope tied to something nice and heavy. By the end of the morning Mr Curry's lawn mower is hanging from his apple tree and Paddington is being chased through the Portobello Road by a policeman. And Mr Gruber's clever way of hiding him is a real treat!

The next day Mr Gruber treats him to a band concert in the park. Paddington spots a piece called the Unfinished Symphony on the programme and is outraged. They've paid five pence each and nobody's even finished it! Off he goes to find Mr Schubert and complain.

That's the joy of these stories. Paddington's logic always makes perfect sense to him, and your reader will be right there with him even as everything falls apart. Then, home alone one afternoon, he hears strange scraping noises in the loft. What would you do?

The grown-ups in these books are so warm. Mr Gruber is endlessly patient and quietly on Paddington's side, even when it means fibbing to a policeman. And the policeman himself has a twinkle in his eye.

The chapters stand on their own, so it works brilliantly at bedtime. It also suits a confident reader who wants something properly funny to read alone. If your child loves the moment just before a plan goes horribly wrong, they'll have a great time.

What to read next

If this one goes down well, Paddington Marches On starts on a snowy morning, with Mr Curry's pipes frozen solid and a borrowed blowlamp in Paddington's paws.