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Where’s Waldo? In Austin of course!

Find Waldo Local has become a beloved summertime event in communities nationwide. This year, Candlewick Press and the American Booksellers Association are again teaming up with 325 independent bookstores nationwide, including Sweet Reads Books and Candy, for some hide-and-seek fun designed to encourage residents to patronize their local businesses. There is no charge to participate, and the hunt lasts for the entire month of July.

Families have loved joining the scavenger hunt to find the iconic children’s book character, with his red-and-white-striped shirt and black glasses, hidden in 26 local businesses, including Coffeehouse on Main, El Mariachis, Brick Furniture, and others. Find Waldo Local is a wonderful way to support the Shop Local movement by increasing foot traffic to a variety of stores.

To join in the fun, people can simply pick up a “Find Waldo Local in Austin!” stamp card at any of the participating stores. With each miniature Waldo they spot, searchers get their card stamped or signed by the participating shop. Eagle-eyed hunters can also look for Waldo’s special 2025 red and white-striped magnifying glass in Sweet Reads.

Collecting store stamps or signatures at 20 or more businesses will entitle diligent seekers entry into a grand-prize drawing for Waldo books and other prizes, including a $100 certificate for ear piercing by Bendexin Jewelry. All participants are welcome to attend the celebration party at Sweet Reads at 1 p.m. on July 31.

Martin Handford’s collections of crowd scenes took the world by storm in the late 1980s, and since then the books have held a place on bookstore shelves, in family libraries, and in classrooms around the world. More than 80 million Waldo books have been sold worldwide, and they’ve been translated into over thirty languages.

For more information about hunting for Waldo in Austin call Sweet Reads at 507-396-8660. To see a map of all participating stores, visit www.indiebound.org.