Paddington at Work

Paddington at Work
Michael Bond

Peggy Fortnum

The irresistible Paddington Bear, who was found on Paddington station, returns in this reissued novel, with a brand new cover design.Paddington has a knack for ‘smelling out things’, and his sharp nose, supported by marmalade sandwiches, leads him into many adventures. Whether it’s lending a paw to a famous Russian ballet dancer, or serving baked elastic instead of ‘Baked Alaska’ this unforgettable bear is as trouble-prone and funny as ever!Stories of Paddington Bear have delighted children all over the world for fifty years.

Copyright (#ulink_9b21313c-ba06-593d-8687-834bb34b2c6c)

First published in Great Britain by William Collins Sons and Co. Ltd in 1966 New edition published by Collins in 1998

This edition first published by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2008 This edition published in 2018

Collins and HarperCollins Children’s Books are divisionsof HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, 1 London Bridge Street, London SE1 9GF.

Visit our website at www.harpercollinschildrensbooks.co.uk

Text copyright © Michael Bond 1966

Illustrations copyright © Peggy Fortnum and William Collins Sons and Co. Ltd 1966

The author and illustrator assert the moral right to be identified as the author and illustrator of this work.

Cover illustration adapted and coloured by Mark Burgess from the original by Peggy Fortnum

Originated by Dot Gradations Ltd, UK Printed in Great Britain by Clays Ltd, St Ives plc

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

Source ISBN: 9780006753674

EBook Edition © OCTOBER 2011 ISBN: 9780007403011

Version: 2018-05-23

Contents

Cover (#u54598225-d877-5cbc-a16d-54e30490ae3e)

Title Page (#ucbc76c46-007b-5829-bb1d-3e357ac94339)

Copyright (#u7790cb8f-ad98-5797-9316-bea758a98d30)

1. A Bear at Sea (#u92e28838-b8e9-5ab3-88c8-b01fd52bfbe7)

2. Anchors Away (#u17b57074-822b-511e-997e-de6962a3ad1c)

3. Paddington Buys a Share (#litres_trial_promo)

4. A Visit to the Stock Exchange (#litres_trial_promo)

5. Paddington in a Hole (#litres_trial_promo)

6. Too Much Off the Top (#litres_trial_promo)

7. Paddington Steps Out (#litres_trial_promo)

Keep Reading … (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Author (#litres_trial_promo)

Other Books by Michael Bond (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter One A BEAR AT SEA (#ulink_898c8bde-40f8-50c2-bece-95a4c9ff295a)

PADDINGTON WOKE WITH a start and after blinking several times in order to accustom his eyes to the evening light, peered round the deck of the liner Karenia with a puzzled expression on his face.

If he hadn’t known it was quite impossible, for the ship was still over two days’ sailing-time away from England, let alone number thirty-two Windsor Gardens in London, he would have sworn he’d just heard his name being called, quite loudly, not only by Mr Brown, but by the rest of the family – Mrs Brown, Jonathan and Judy, not to mention Mrs Bird into the bargain.

Normally Paddington was rather keen on dreams. Some of the ones he’d had in the past had been very good value indeed, especially after one of Mrs Bird’s heavy suppers. But as he looked around the deserted deck of the great ship he began to decide that the one he’d just experienced seemed almost too real for his liking.

It was that time in the day when the half-light from the setting sun plays strange tricks with the shadows, and with most of the other passengers still below and not even so much as the friendly white coat of a steward anywhere in sight, Paddington almost wished he hadn’t partaken of a second helping of the suet pudding which the chef had prepared especially for him that evening.

Pausing only to dip one paw into a nearby jar of marmalade, he pulled his duffle coat hood more firmly over his head and then settled back again in the deck chair as he turned his attention to a large tin marked OSBORNE BISCUITS – PROPERTY OF P. BROWN ESQ. WANTED ON VOYAGE, which stood near by.

Paddington liked Osborne biscuits, especially when they were covered in a thick layer of marmalade chunks, and soon a steady munching sound broke the stillness of the evening air.

The journey to Darkest Peru in order to take part in his Aunt Lucy’s birthday celebrations at the Home for Retired Bears in Lima had been a long and enjoyable one, but all the same, now that he was nearing the end of the return voyage, Paddington was beginning to feel more and more excited at the prospect of seeing all his old friends once again, and after a moment’s thought he put this down as the cause of his unusually lifelike dream.

Gradually the combination of a large and most enjoyable dinner, the sea air, and the distant throb of the engines far below, all had a soothing effect. In no time at all he was fast asleep again, and not even the plonk of an Osborne biscuit as it slipped from his paw and rolled across the deck towards the scuppers served to waken him.

Paddington wasn’t quite sure when it happened, or how long it lasted, but suddenly he found himself in the middle of yet another dream and to his surprise it once again had to do with the Browns.

As a dream it was, if anything, even more vivid than the first one.

It all started when he dropped one of his biscuits at the top of a steep hill near Windsor Gardens. Instead of breaking or even falling over on its side, it landed edge downwards and immediately started rolling after him. Worse still, with every passing second it grew larger and larger, and as it grew larger so it rolled faster until in the end Paddington found himself running down the Portobello Road, in and out of all the market stalls, as fast as his legs would carry him.

All the time, although he couldn’t see them, he could distinctly hear the voices of the Brown family calling out his name.

And then the worst happened. One moment he was running along the road mopping his brow and glancing anxiously over his shoulder at the pursuing biscuit, the next moment it was just as if he had stepped into a great pool of treacle. The more he tried to move his legs, the more impossible it became, until quite suddenly he woke with a start and found himself sitting on the deck almost completely enveloped in his duffle coat.

As he struggled free, Paddington discovered to his surprise that not only had he got one of his paws stuck inside the jar of marmalade but that in his excitement he’d also knocked over the tin of biscuits and quite a number of them had rolled out on to the deck.

It was a large tin and it had been given to him by his Aunt Lucy as a parting gift just before he set sail on the return voyage to England. Even though he’d had to dip into it quite heavily on a number of occasions, there were still several layers left, and Paddington had no wish to lose any of them before the end of the journey so he spent the next few seconds hastily gathering up the remains.

It was as he picked up the last of the biscuits that he suddenly froze in his tracks and stared along the deck at a group of five very familiar figures who had suddenly appeared out of a patch of shadow near the stern.

Before he even had time to blink, the figures all began waving frantically and calling his name as they moved towards him in a body.