Paddington Helps Out

Paddington #3

by Michael Bond, Peggy Fortnum (Illustrator)

That bear is back again, and in this new edition of Paddington Helps Out, his attraction for near disaster is as magnetic as ever. Who but Paddington would set out to cook dumplings only to find himself chased from the kitchen by something so nasty only his resourceful friend Mr. Gruber can rescue him? And who else could get away with sawing his neighbor's kitchen table in two or flooding the launderette? These and other riotous adventures all find their way into Paddington's scrapbook and make for another delightful book starring this beloved bear from Darkest Peru.

Genres: Childrens, Fiction, Classics, Audiobook, Animals, Fantasy, Middle Grade

144 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 1960

About the author

Michael Bond, CBE was an English children's author. 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. Bond also wrote culinary mystery stories for adults featuring Monsieur Pamplemousse and his faithful bloodhound, Pommes Frites.

Reviews

[Hilary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the stories 3 star and some 5 star. We were really pleased to find this 1960's copy at a book sale. The cover is beautiful and Peggy Fortnum's illustrations are wonderful. The stories all follow the winning formula of Paddington, a bear who has come to live with the Brown family, doing everyday activities that he hasn't experienced before. The stories are all the more funny because you know things are going to go wrong, misunderstandings are going to happen and mild chaos that always ends up not being too bad in the end. We really enjoyed reading about our childhood favourite bear and have both been humming the theme tune from the 70's animated series for several days now!

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

More misadventures of the adorable bear. Paddington just can’t seem to stay out of trouble! 😂

[Viktorija| Laisvalaikis su knyga · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nors mano dukrytė yra mėgėja pažiūrėti filmukus, kuriuose yra meškiukas Pedingtonas, bet paklausus ar ji nori, kad iš bibliotekos paimčiau apie šį veikėją knygutes - atsakė neigiamai. Priežastis labai paprasta - joje nėra spalvotų paveikslėlių.

Ši knygutė pačiai patiko kiek mažiau nei "Meškiukas vardu Pedingtonas". Pastarąją skaitant daugiau šypsojausi ar net kvatojau - tiek daug kėlė teigiamų emocijų ❤️ Ši knygelė pačiai buvo daug "rimtesnė ", nors ir šioje knygelėje meškiukas vis patekdavo į tokias situacijas iš kurių reikėdavo rasti sprendimą, kad vėl viskas būtų gerai...

[Katja Labonté · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars & 4/10 hearts. Ah, Paddington. The appeal in his stories lies, I am sure, in the everlasting naïveté of this bear. Several of these stories reminded me of the ones in A Bear Called Paddington, yet Paddington never seems to change or learn! The humour, as usual, was excellent. Paddington’s struggles with dumplings, washing machines, and DIY magazine racks are all relatable, another reason why they’re so appealing! I rather missed Mr. Curry, who didn’t show up very much, but Mr. Gruber did, which was nice. Overall, although not as funny as books 1 & 2, it was an enjoyable third book to the series and still pretty humorous.

Content: euphemisms.

[Mohsen M.B · Rating 4 out of 5]

آدم (خرس) باید نظرکرده باشه که از هر خرابکاری‌اش موقعیتی فوق‌العاده خلق بشه، نه؟ :))ـ

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yet more mishaps and shenanigans courtesy of the cutest little brown bear.

[Lydia Sheneman · Rating 4 out of 5]

#1 paddington fan

[Sheila Beaumont · Rating 5 out of 5]

More of Paddington's hilarious misadventures. I especially liked the final story, in which Paddington is treated to dinner at a fancy restaurant for his birthday.

[Amy Rogers · Rating 5 out of 5]

So cute.
Great family read, anyone can enjoy it. I could not stop laughing most chapters.

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paddington Bear finds himself having all sorts of problems when he tries his best to help other people. Another wonderful, funny & heartwarming adventure from the talented Michael Bond.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another charming tale about Paddington and the Brown family!

Ages: 5+

Cleanliness: for goodness' sake, goodness gracious, Mercy, Gosh, and Crikey are used. Mentions a man smoking a pipe.

**Like my reviews? Then you should follow me! Because I have hundreds more just like this one. With each review, I provide Content Considerations, mentioning any objectionable content I come across so that parents and/or conscientious readers (like me) can determine beforehand whether they want to read a book or not. Content surprises are super annoying, especially when you’re 100+ pages in, so here’s my attempt to help you avoid that!

If you’re considering a book or looking for a new title to read, check out my highly categorized shelves, read my reviews and Friend or Follow me to spiff up your feed with clean, wholesome, living books.

[Emilija Palionyte · Rating 4 out of 5]

jis toooooks debiliukas i cant😭😭😭😭 bet visada jam kažkaip gaunasi išsisukt tai nors negyvenam pasakoj man čia didelė pamokėlė kad dauguma dalykų kažkaip išsisprendžia 😌 ypač su kitų pagalba. žiauriai keuziii bet atėmiau žvaigždutę nes i miss stephen fry ir silly muzikytės chapterių pabaigoj 😔😔

[giso0 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh dear, Paddington Bear finds himself in trouble again.

[Keksisbaby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paddington lebt nun schon seit geraumer Zeit im Hause der Browns und davor war es sehr viel ruhiger. Der kleine Bär versucht natürlich sich als nützliches Familienmitglied zu erweisen und leiht daher gern mal eine Hand bzw. eine Tatze, nicht immer mit Erfolg. Sei es ob er nun versucht einen Zeitungsständer zu bauen und dabei den Tisch von Mr. Curry zerstört, bei einer Auktion unbewusst auf ein Zimmermannswerkzeug bietet oder sich als Haushaltshilfe für das erkrankte Ehepaar Brown versucht. Zum Glück enden alle seine Abenteuer immer gut.

Das ist mein neuntes Buch um den kleinen Paddington aus dem dunkelsten Peru. Diesmal ist der Bär eine Hilfe für fast jeden, außer für den Nachbarn Mr. Curry. Der ist aber ohnehin unsympathisch und verdient diese kleinen Missgeschicke irgendwie. Es sind immer nur kurze Episoden und irgendwie wartet man als Leser schon darauf, welche Katastrophe ihren Lauf nimmt, während Paddington nur ehrbare Absichten hat. Es sind unschuldige Geschichten für Kinder und mich heitern sie immer wieder auf, denn der kleine Bär ist so liebenswert, dass ich mir manchmal wünsche ich wäre ein Mitglied der Familie Brown. Auf meinem Stapel liegen Gottseidank noch drei weitere Geschichtensammlungen von dem putzigen Fellknäul auf die ich mich schon wahnsinnig freue. Man kann sich damit gut einen trüben Nachmittag auf der Couch vertreiben ohne missmutig zu werden.

Paddington ist nicht nur etwas für Kinder. Ich für meinen Teil habe einen Heidenspaß bei jedem neuen Buch. Die Geschichten kommen nie in die Jahre und sind noch immer so aktuell wie damals.

[Christina Stind · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Paddington! This is the third book about him and even though the first is by far the best, it is still a very funny and enjoyable read. Will definitely have to find some Paddington books for my child when she's old enough.
In this book, we go along on several adventures with Paddington - we go for a picnic on the river with him, to a auction house, the cinema, the launderette and out for dinner, as well as see Paddington trying to cook dinner and - my favourite - Paddington as a do it yourself type of bear who tries to build a magazine rack. He gets the rack build - but destroys a kitchen table in the process... It's easy to get into trouble when you're only a small bear with paws... and it's very funny to read about.

[Fi's Journey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like Paddington. He always gets either into misadventures or just fun adventures... either way he always gets into something exciting. This is part of him being a bear of course. So curious about everything.

The parts I liked the most were when he goes to the cinema (pictures), when he is making food for Mr and Mrs Brown and when they are going out for dinner for Paddington's birthday (at the end of the book).

Read as an audiobook that is narrated by Hugh Bonneville. I actually really enjoy his voice!

[Nina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, at this stage I didn't think anyone could equal Stephen Fry when it comes to narrating Paddington, but it turns out Hugh Bonneville is up to the task! What a lovely performance. I particularly enjoyed the story where they all go to the cinema, and now can only mourn the fact that I am unlikely to ever see a theatre organ rise out of a floor. (Did they really do that in 1960? That is just SO cool!) To alleviate this sadness, I am practicing my Hard Stare in the mirror, so I can use it on anyone who is ever rude to the "young fellow, my bear". Onwards to the next book in the series!

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another collection of Paddington (mis) adventures. in this one Paddington goes for a picnic, goes to an auction, tries a bit of DIY, goes to the cinema, goes to the launderette, tries a bit of cooking and finally goes to a posh restaurant..... all with predictably disastrous results. all of his mishaps are good fun to read and you can't help but be spirited back to days of innocence and youth. onto the next one....

[Em · Rating 4 out of 5]

So cute! Full of the usual trouble and mix-ups, like a trip to an auction house. That was always going to go well with a bear who likes politely waving and tipping his hat to strangers.

Also includes Paddington visiting the cinema, eating a celebratory dinner in a fancy restaurant, washing clothes at the laundromat, going boating, and doing some cooking and woodworking. All things where nothing could possibly go wrong...

[Shiloah · Rating 5 out of 5]

First reading was with the family.

Second 2025 (Oct) reading was with Ben and Nicolette. We had spent several days in London and bought Nicolette a Paddington bear. She is finally enraptured with this bear. We watched the movie with the grandbabies in St. Louis last night as well.

[Illiterate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Paddington tries boats, DIY, laundry, etc. Uh oh.

[Katha · Rating 5 out of 5]

2025: Ready for Paddington in Peru

Aww my Nostalgic Heart

[Irene · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this little bear and the devastation he leaves behind.

[Violet_the_bibliophile · Rating 5 out of 5]

I simply love this book!!! Paddington is such a sweet bear and his adventures in London are always full of new things to learn and...sometimes...troubles...❤😁

[ang ⭑]

(date is inaccurate because I just know it was 2015 when i first read this)

[Rebecca is book-hooked · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️ I laughed out loud reading this.

[Samuel Aitkenhead · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book should be made into a movie hilarious 💀

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who doesn’t want Paddington to serve them dumplings and soup in bed?

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amusing, easy read. I like that despite his fails, there are always kind people helping him get out of his scrapes. Definitely some facepalm moments. I do get a little irritated that his family doesn't take the time to show or explain things to him. A couple British slang words.

[Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I somehow missed the Brown family during the first decade of my life. But I almost don’t mind because it’s so much fun to get to know them with my girl during her first decade.

If all you know of this bear is his iconic hat, you’re missing a lot of laughs.

Bond plays it just right. No one actually questions the fact that a bear is walking and talking (and cooking and cleaning and shopping). But the more refined members of London society are less than thrilled to draw him into their circles.

The head waiter at a French restaurant, for instance, refuses to seat Paddington’s group.

“I’m afraid the young gentleman isn’t wearing evening dress,” he says with an eye on the clothes-less bear.

Judy leaps to his defense: “Bears don’t have evening dress. They have evening fur – and Paddington’s has been washed specially.”

The head waiter is silenced, and the Brown’s party is seated.

Paddington himself blithely drifts through his days, bent on helping but leaving a wide path of messes and upheaval in his wake. Bond writes him as oblivious but even my 8-year-old can see the trouble coming every time. Her out-loud laughs made the book for me.

Every chapter is its own little story – the day Paddington went to the “launderette,” his first movie, dinner out – perfect for reading in its entirety right before bed.

And there’s the whole beautiful 50-years-old-and-also-British thing going on.

Mrs. Bird, the housekeeper, compliments Paddington on his efforts while she was out of town and Mr. and Mrs. Brown were sick: “That young bear’s one of the old school.”

Paddington is happy but confused.

But “when Mr. Gruber explained to him that it meant he was very reliable, Paddington felt even more pleased. Compliments from Mrs. Bird were very rare. ‘But all the better for having when they come, Mr. Brown,’ said Mr. Gruber. ‘All the better for having when they come.’”