Funtastic book benches hit London

The marmalade sandwich-loving bear from Darkest Peru is celebrated in this bench on the south bank of London's Thames river.

The "Alice in Wonderland" bench near London's City Hallby was designed by surreal cartoonist Ralph Steadman.

Another children's favorite. The "How to Train your Dragon" bench can also be found close to City Hall.

Romantically-confused diarist Bridget Jones features on this book bench in Paternoster Square, in London's City financial district.

There's no obvious London connection here, but "The Cat in the Hat" and other Dr Seuss creations are perennial favorites everywhere. This bench can be found by the river, near City Hall.

Rudyard Kipling's classic jungle-based tales are pictured on this bench positioned by a crossroads in Greenwich Park, the home of London's Royal Observatory.

Visitors should leave this bench tidy if they don't wish to incur the displeasure of London's favorite nanny, Mary Poppins. This one can be found by flying down to St. Paul's Cathedral.

Jane Austen's much-loved tale of marriage and manners, "Pride and Prejudice," gets the bench treatment in Queen Square, Bloomsbury.

H.G. Wells's sci-fi masterpiece "The Time Machine" is depicted on a bench located -- appropriately -- in Greenwich, close to the Prime Meridian which defines Universal Time.

• Fifty benches celebrating popular London-linked fiction have been scattered about London


• Paddington Bear, Sherlock Holmes and Mary Poppins among literary creations celebrated by the benches


• Seating trails will be in place until September after which the benches will be auctioned for charity

(CNN) -- As part of a scheme to encourage reading, 50 benches designed in the style of popular novels or kids' stories have been scattered around London.

Visitors to the city can find the book benches, which mainly celebrate London's rich literary heritage, by following a series of trails around areas with strong links to writing and writers.

Several prominent artists -- including Ralph Steadman, the surreal cartoonist and one-time sidekick of Hunter S. Thompson -- have been involved in creating benches that feature enduring characters such as Paddington Bear, Mary Poppins, Sherlock Holmes and James Bond.

The "Books about Town" trails, launched by two UK charities, the National Literacy Trust and Wild in Art, can be found in London's Bloomsbury, Greenwich, Riverside and City areas until mid-September 2014.

For those who can't get enough of literature-themed loungers, the benches will be auctioned off in October with proceeds going to help fight illiteracy.

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