Help Your Kid Find Waldo in Darien and Support Your Local Businesses

Where’s Waldo? In Darien, of course! The iconic children’s book character in the red-and-white-striped shirt and black-rimmed specs is back again visiting 25 local businesses throughout our community this July.

Find Waldo Local is a great summer vacation activity and a wonderful way to support local businesses and the Shop Local movement in our community.

— an announcement from Barrett Bookstore

Anyone who wishes to participate can pick up a “Find Waldo Local in Darien!” passport at Barrett Bookstore, 314 Heights Road, Darien.

The passport contains the names of all participating stores. Find Waldo participants need to have their passport stamped or signed for each Waldo they spot. A mini Waldo figure is hiding in each of the locations.

And to make things a little more challenging, Waldo and his friends have each dropped a precious item in Barrett Bookstore.

These items can be spotted as well. Collecting store stamps or signatures at 20 or more businesses will entitle diligent seekers entry into a grand-prize drawing on July 31, with the top prize being an six-volume set of Waldo books.

____________

You might combine your Waldo store visits with this event:

• This Year’s Darien Sidewalk Sales and Family Fun Days Runs July 12 to 14 (June 14)

____________

Martin Handford’s collections of crowd scenes took the world by storm in the late 1980s, and since then they have held a cherished spot on bookstore shelves. There are now over 70 million Waldo books in print worldwide, and they’ve been translated into over thirty-one languages.

An entire generation has grown up searching for Waldo. Participants of Find Waldo Local will have the added fun of searching for items dropped by Waldo’s intrepid traveling companions: Wenda, Woof, Wizard Whitebeard, and Odlaw.

Once again, in celebration of Waldo’s longevity and popularity, his American publisher, Candlewick Press, is teaming up with the American Booksellers Association and 250 independent bookstores across the country for some hide-and-seek fun to encourage communities to patronize their local businesses. There is no charge to participate, and the hunt lasts for the entire month of July.

• It concludes with a Wrap Up Party at 3 p.m., July 31 at Barrett Bookstore for everyone who has a completed passport. Refreshments, raffle and prizes, including a six-volume deluxe set of Waldo books!

For more information about hunting for Waldo in Darien, call Barrett Bookstore at 203-655-2712.