TITLE: Where's Waldo, Where's Waldo: The Fantastic Journey, Where's Waldo Now?, Where's Waldo: In Hollywood, Where's Waldo: The Great Picture Hunt, Where's Waldo: The Wonder Book
AUTHOR + ILLUSTRATOR: Martin Handford
PUBLISHED BY: Candlewick
PURCHASE: Amazon
I have to spend a few months with you this morning telling you about one of the greatest series of books of the 90's: Where's Waldo. Everyone in my generation knows them, and loves them, remembering the countless hours they spent pouring over every page of these books, long after they had located the non-chalant Waldo, and his charming Jaques Tati inspired striped shirt. But if you didn't grow up in the 90's, or have kids in the 90's, then I am afraid you might have missed these hilarious, enthralling, silly and engaging books.
As you can see from the pictures, above and below, these comic scenes, wherein Waldo is hidden, are full of practical jokes, glorious details, history, modernity, and human folly. On every huge two page spread, you have to find the elusive Waldo, in his striped shirt, blue jeans, and walking stick. Sometimes he finds himself in different places in history: an Aztec temple, a french Napoleonic ball (complete with can-can dancers); sometimes he's in modern days: on the beach, at the zoo, in a shopping mall. All around him are thousands of people funnily living their lives and entertaining all of us with their mischief, folly, and vivacity. Now that I think of it, I don't know any books that show so much life in such a small space.
Waldo is in the air right now (I expect to bump into him on the metro one of these days. I found a good copy of my favorite of the books (Where's Waldo Now?--the history one) at the library book sale last week. And on Saturday a friend gave Spoon's 4 year old daughter a Where's Waldo book as well. Four is a good age to start, actually. But you'll love them till your 90.
(For the kids of the aughts + teens, there are iPhone aps and so forth on the official Where's Waldo site.)
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She is from Napa, California, and currently lives in Virginia.
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2 comments:
Oh Thank you!
I'm at the library and you just convinced me to find and bring home one of these books for Z and A
We have a Ehere is Jesus book, which I think is a take off on Where's Waldo. It's really hard to find Him (and all the other items you have to look for) on those pages. !!!
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