When the neighbor's lawn mower disappears into a tree, when a small furry face peers frantically out of the screen of the new TV set, when the spotless kitchen becomes a chaos of steam and spilled syrup, and when a riot suddenly breaks out in the bargain basement... Paddington has done it again.

It's hard to say that the Paddington books are getting lazy by this point, but they certainly are becoming a bit rote. Free of any overarching theme, Paddington wanders like a preschool Monsieur Hulot from one situation to another, with only very loose links. The Browns seem to have been reduced to even more of a Greek chorus than usual in this one, standing aside or watching from afar as Paddington is rushed to hospital, lost in a department store (again), or - in the best chapter - playing as a contestant on a television game show. By this point, we all know he's going to come out all right in the end. ( )

Paddington, the bear from darkest Peru, was found by the Brown family on Paddington station. In this adventure Paddington has a sticky time of it making toffee in Mrs Bird's kitchen, and an even stickier time trying to explain the mess.