Bond, M. (2017). Paddington’s Prize Picture. New York: Harper Collins.

Paddington is living with the Brown family. He has a good relationship with the various residents of the neighborhood. He visits Mr. Gruber’s antique shop and sees Mr. Gruber cleaning an old painting. A second painting is revealed underneath the first. Paddington is flummoxed and impressed by this and rushes home. He finds a painting in the shed that Mr. Brown had been planning to submit for an art competition. Paddington is sure there will be a second painting underneath, so he “cleans” the painting. The result is just a messy blurring of the painting Mr. Brown had made. Paddington tried, in vain, to repair the damage he had done, but he could not restore the painting to the way it had been before. He hid it under a drop cloth and went into the house. He was covered in paint spots, and Mrs. Brown assumed he was sick and sent him to bed. The following day, at the art competition, Mr. Brown’s painting won first prize. When Mr. Brown went to claim his prize, he saw that his painting was just a few messy splotches of paint, not the scene of a sailboat he had painted. Paddington looked guilty. Mr. Brown was Paddington’s look and proudly accepted the winnings, declaring that the prize money would be sent to the home for retired bears, where Paddington’s Aunt Lucy was residing. The family was happy as Paddington carried Mr. Brown’s trophy home. This book is suitable for children ages 3-6 years. ( )