Book Review: Paddington On Top by Michael Bond (Paddington Bear #10)

Up until now, Paddington has managed to avoid school. But the Inspector himself catches up with him and packs him off. After one day, even the teacher wonders whether there is anything he can teach Paddington!

 

My Review:

It is with a sense of horror that Mrs Brown leads the official letter that tells her that Paddington must be sent to the local school to be with the other kids. How on earth is any teacher going to teach Paddington the basics that kids learn when he is already a self sufficient and somewhat difficult bear at the best of times? It doesn't take long for the teacher to become frustrated to the highest level with poor Paddington! Mr Gruber decides on a new trip, this time to the courts and he takes Paddington along to give him a look at how justice works. However, Paddington gets a closer look at the wheels of justice than he imagined when he gets called as a material witness in a case by mistake. Honestly Paddington, why can't you just correct them on their error instead of making things worse!

 

Paddington becomes the victim of a conman who convinces him to sell hoovers which is going to be a very bad thing for Mr Curry's blood pressure. A trip to the beach theatre sounds like a great way to cheer a bear up but when they arrive, the theatre has sadly been turned into a bingo hall. The disappointed bear goes for a walk (always a dangerous thing!) and thinks it would be fun to try his paw at a bit of water skiing. Oh no Paddington, don't do it! Bears and water are not a good combination. Mr Curry is interested to hear that Paddington is now in possession of exercise equipment and he decides to try and con it out of him...but of course as always, it is Mr Curry who comes off the worse in the situation. 

 

The fun continues for Paddington when the family are invited to watch a school rugby match. It starts out as a normal day but of course with Paddington it is never that simple. The team from Peru are a player short so they have to draft Paddington in to play instead. The rugby match was a lot of fun to read about and we get the added joy of finally meeting Paddington's beloved Aunt Lucy, who sent him on his journey to London. It was lovely to meet her and she is a great character-endearing and amusing!

 

I start to wonder if it is safe to take Paddington anywhere, but if you do take that bear on a trip, it is vital that he is supervised at every moment for everyone's safety! On the other side of the coin, it isn't a good idea to leave the dreaded bear in your home either, as you never know what mischief those paws are going to get into! This was another very enjoyable Paddington adventure that I enjoyed.

 

Read July 2020

4 stars.