This is a book about a lost teddy bear. You have read books like this before. I am thinking in particular about Ducky's Nest and Finding Monkey Moon. The difference with The Lost Property Office comes from the setting - this toy is left on the train seat and more importantly the difference is the rich illustrations depicting people from different backgrounds and cultures using the London Underground. I especially love the way Emily Rand draws Grandpa's hair and beard. Take look here at the Tate Shop web site where you can preview some pages from this book. The actual lost property office in this book is also a page to enjoy. You will find the usual things like bags, balls and books along with an iron, a violin, false teeth, frying pan and so much more.
You can see some of the wonderful illustrations by Emily Rand here on her website but I also wish I could show you the end papers from this book. They are a real treat. At first glance they look the same but on closer inspection different things have been dropped by people hurrying to their trains onto the station floor. The floor itself is also wonderful. It is exactly like the floor at a railway station. I do not know what material this is but I will call it crushed granite. The Australian distributor for this book - Hardie Grant uses the words charming and elegant to describe the illustrations.
The actual London Underground Lost Property office is at Baker Street Station (until 21st October, 2019). Take a couple of minutes to watch this video. Just under 10,000 umbrellas went into lost property last year but they are not the number one item. Read more here. I also found this list from 2014 of the most lost items from one to ten. I was happy to see Teddy Bears are not listed in the top ten.
I think this book would be the perfect addition to any library collection either in a school or in a public library. One more thing to think about - Emily Rand did not put her name on the front cover of this book - I wonder why?
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