Hopeless Quest for OOP Book Title, principals Tiger and Alien Bean

Hoping that this might spark a recollection in someone. I'm trying to find the title/author of a children's book about a tiger who found and was protecting an alien being that took the form of a bean. It is almost certainly out of print and obscure. I know it existed, as my brother had a copy as a child. I'm guessing it would date to the 1960s, but that's only a guess. It could have been an older book. Unfortunately, that's all I know.