EDWARD BEAR ESQ.

EDWARD BEAR ESQ. Michele Brown (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, $14.95) Of all the playthings to become loony collectibles, the teddy bear may have suffered the transition most gracefully. What other turn-of-the-century artifact, after all, commands a rigorous...snuggle? Brown did cofound an entire Teddy Bear Museum in Warwickshire, England. And she staunchly defends her pet passion against professional dealers and corporate sensibilities (Disney coldly co-opting poor Winnie-the-Pooh). But her tale of battling American and German toy factories, the golden age between the World Wars, and the many royal adherents of what is, let's remind ourselves, a stuffed animal, is unfawning and prettily told. A