Reviews

Paddington Goes to Town by Peggy Fortnum, Michael Bond

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chitownbookworm's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

legalois's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

4.0

vikingwolf's review against another edition

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4.0

Paddington gets himself into a few pickles this time. He is selected to be an usher at Harold's wedding but nobody explains what it means so he is giving out hard stares to anyone in the congregation, thinking he has to 'ush them! It leads to more disaster when he puts the ring on his paw for safe keeping and can't get it off again! He also makes a fatal mistake in agreeing to be caddy for Mr Curry in a golfing competition and his antics end up with another hospital visit. Poor Paddington also manages to get lost in the hospital at visiting time and almost causes a psychiatrist to have his own breakdown trying to deal with him as a patient. He does also manage to stop a bit of acting up by Mr Curry to the delight of the hospital staff.

Paddington cannot seem to do even the simple things without getting himself into a mess. Helping Mr Gruber with his patio turns out to be a lot easier than getting involved in a bit of door to door carol singing for charity, as Paddington somehow gets roped into being a chef at a Christmas party and trying his paw at making Baked Alaska, which he has never heard of, so he makes it up as he goes along in true Paddington style!

I laughed a lot at Paddington's hospital visit. Why doesn't the silly bear just ASK where to find the ward he is looking for? Why did he not have that information from the Browns? Why would he expect a receptionist to just know where Mr Curry was when Paddington never even said he was a patient and she assumed Mr Curry was a doctor! Paddington playing that opposites game with the doctor was so funny, especially when he doesn't realise that the game is over and keeps going! I also loved the Baked Elastic escapade! That poor bear isn't the sharpest tool in the box but I blame the humans for not explaining everything to him well enough and leaving him unattended in places where he can get into trouble.

Another excellent Paddington adventure!

carmanj's review against another edition

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4.0

More misadventures with Paddington. Two chapters set at Christmas conclude this charming collection.

relf's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

One of the best of the Paddington books, nothing complicated, just a return to Paddington's mishaps turning out for the good. Read my grandson a chapter here and there over about six months, and happened to read the last two, Christmas-themed, chapters just after Christmas. My grandson is 8 now and a really good reader, but he still loves to have Paddington read aloud to him.