As well as Paddington, Michael Bond was also the creator of the inimitable Olga da Polga, guinea-pig, teller of tall tales and all-round irresistible character.
With a new TV series coming to CBeebies, publisher Oxford has published the stories as lovely paperback collections.
This is the first in the series and also features Catherine Rayner’s gorgeous black and white illustrations. It describes how Olga comes to move in with the Sawdust family – as she calls them – and to meet her friends Noel the cat, Fangio the hedgehog and Graham the tortoise. There’s excitement as she wins a rosette in a show, encounters the ‘Surrey Puma’ (almost), suffers an injury and recovers thanks to the Sugar Plum Fairy. Each story is a perfect adventure and, as life with Olga is anything but dull, each one is full of incident and drama. Indeed, thanks to their small star, these make hugely entertaining reading.
From the author of Paddington Bear, Michael Bond's loveable guinea-pig has been charming readers for over 50 years.
Olga da Polga has left the pet shop to start a new life with her owners. Her home is now a large and airy hutch and it's not long before she meets Noel the cat, Fangio the hedgehog, and Graham the tortoise. Her garden companions soon discover that Olga loves an audience and from the moment she arrives she tells them stories about her wild and exciting adventures.
Although they are not always sure whether to believe everything Olga says, one thing is certain-since Olga moved in, life is never dull! Whether she's Olga the explorer, Olga the prizewinner, or Olga the storyteller, she is always Olga da Polga!
'There are a great many animal stories on the bookshelves these days, but it takes a lot to beat the charm and gentle humour of Olga da Polga . . . Just sit back and enjoy.' - Home and School
Olga's tales are tall, furry, and endlessly entertaining. - Hugh Bonneville
Author
About Michael Bond
Michael Bond 13 Jan 1926 - 28 June 2017. Born in Newbury, Berkshire, England he was educated at Presentation College, Reading. During World War II Michael Bond served in both the Royal Air Force and the Middlesex Regiment of the British Army. He began writing in 1945 and sold his first short story to a magazine called London Opinion. This experience helped him decide that he wanted to be a writer.
Michael Bond never thought of writing for children but, after producing a number of short stories and radio plays, his agent suggested that he adapt a television play for children. His first book, A Bear Called Paddington, was published in 1958 by William Collins & Sons (now HarperCollins Publishers). At the time, Michael Bond was working as a television cameraman for the BBC.
After the first Paddington book was accepted, Michael Bond went on to write a whole series and by 1967 his books were so successful that that he was able to give up his job with the BBC in order to become a full-time writer.
In 2015, Michael was awarded a CBE for his services to children’s literature, to add to the OBE he received in 1997.
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.
For the last 37 years of his life Michael Bond lived in London, not far from Paddington Station where it all began. He continued to write until shortly before he died on 27th June 2017, aged 91.
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