A lovely little book that filled me hope and joy… Read on own, and with my son aged 7, a book for the whole family. My son has a 'My First Paddington' gifted by some lovely friends and a Paddington car seat toy which he has found variously amusing and terrifying. Now you can learn life lessons from the much-loved bear from Darkest Peru, in this uplifting collection of quotations from the enduringly popular books by Michael Bond, with beautiful illustrations by the original Paddington illustrator, Peggy Fortnum. I’m thoroughly embarrassed to admit that this was my first experience of reading about Paddington bear. He was the creator of Paddington Bear and wrote about the adventures of a guinea pig named Olga da Polga, as well as the animated BBC TV series The Herbs.

How to Be More Paddington is more celebration of this fantastic character's warmth than sincere self-help but it is incredibly special nonetheless. But while it would be easy for Paddington to have become hopelessly dated, instead he seems to represent us at our best. The one aspect that I wish that the book had captured was the way that Paddington also stands up for himself. Biography: Michael Bond was born in Newbury, Berkshire on 13 January 1926 and educated at Presentation College, Reading. In 1997 Michael Bond was awarded an OBE for services to children’s literature and this was followed by a CBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours in 2015.Indeed, so many of the values and points of manners which are so important to Paddington feel like they belong to a different age. From winning the hearts of the Brown family, to sharing elevenses with Mr Gruber and lending a paw around the neighbourhood, Paddington always tries to do his very best for others…even if there are a few well-intentioned mishaps along the way!

Over the past few years of seeking out Paddington stories for my own child, I have found the newer R W Alley illustrations strangely jarring - this is not the bear that I grew up with. Bond also wrote culinary mystery stories for adults featuring Monsieur Pamplemousse and his faithful bloodhound, Pommes Frites. In 2015, Michael was awarded a CBE for his services to children’s literature, to add to the OBE he received in 1997.This is an extremely minor point though and I can understand why this aspect of his character would be trickier to include in a book that is just a ray of sunshine on a cloudy day. Michael Bond was born in Newbury, Berkshire on 13 January 1926 and educated at Presentation College, Reading. Now you can learn how to be more like the much-loved bear from Darkest Peru in this uplifting collection of inspiring – often hilarious – quotes from the enduringly popular books by Michael Bond, with beautiful illustrations by the original Paddington illustrator, Peggy Fortnum.