A+
Title: Where's Waldo
Author: Martin Handford
Publication Info: Candlewick April 10, 2007
ISBN: 0763634980
Genre: Top 100 Banned Books
Submitted by: Brandyllyn
What did this bespectacled, befuddled, behatted man do to earn the ire of some proportion of the American public?
Waldo (or Wally in the original UK print), a brunet in perhaps is early thirties, perpetually wanders the world in blue jeans and a candy-cane striped shirt with matching toque. He is also perhaps the only man in the world who hides for a living… all the time. He is joined on his travels by his dog, Woof, and his girlfriend, Wenda/Wanda. Occasional sightings of Waldo’s ex-girlfriend Wilma have been known to happen, but as Wilma is Wenda’s identical twin, it is uncertain if these sightings are always genuine. Plotting against Waldo is his arch-nemesis, Odlaw. Odlaw has stolen both his name and his wardrobe from Waldo and it is little wonder that he lurks amongst the pages of the Where’s Waldo? series hoping to in some way undermine Waldo’s efforts at… um… hiding.
Waldo himself could certainly stand to be more selective on the company he keeps. Seen at Viking banquets, courthouses full of lawyers and at an area suspiciously similar to a brothel, Waldo shows a remarkable lack of morals when choosing his associates. And yet, I find it hard to fault him for it. Sure, Waldo could show some discretion, but it sends a powerful message of inclusiveness out to today’s children that Waldo is not afraid to be seen with court jesters; and is as ready to submit himself to their company as with the fine men and women establishing the first moon colony. Waldo’s childlike sense of wonder at the world should be an inspiration to us all. Waldo finds joy in almost any situation – from seaside resorts to the dungeons of the furthest Neptunian moons. And he never gives up. Never mind if you find him in Bangladesh, he’ll move on, gathering up his friends and assorted lost belongings before he goes. (If nothing else, everyone could take a leaf out of Waldo’s book whilst traveling.)
Waldo is welcoming. He always smiles and keeps the company of both a good woman and a good dog. And no matter what terrible things his enemy does to him, he never retaliates. And he never gives up.
Should we ask anything less than that of our children? Can we afford to ask anything less than that of ourselves?
Waldo was banned?
Waldo was banned.
…
There are no words. NO WORDS, I TELL YOU!
I cannot believe that I live in a country where “Where’s Waldo” is considered a threat to children, but saying the “Pledge of Allegiance” (in it’s altered, God-fearing state) is manditory in most schools.
As my 15-year-old daughter and the characters of Grey’s Anatomy are fond of saying: “Seriously?” I’ll have to do a Google search and find out why this book is banned. The idea is preposterous. There are other books on the list that obviously contain scenes that might give a parent pause, but Waldo? I can’t imagine what would be in a Waldo book that would cause a parent to worry.
Great review!
i have got to agree with Elizabeth and Dani—WALDO? WALDO was banned?
my gramma used to have some old kid’s books at her house for the grandkids to read, and waldo was a big favorite for me and my brother. jaysus.
I was shocked and asked my husband, the librarian,”…why on earth?”
He said one of the books, he thinks the third one, had a topless woman in a beach scene.
Considering how crowded those pages are, it’s hard to believe anyone would even notice.
The topless thing? That’s the kind of thing you have to practically be looking for specifically to find. Like, um, Waldo. Poor guy, I had no idea he got banhammered. 🙁
They banned Where’s Wally???
I demand an explanation for this bullshit.
Yup, there’s a topless mermaid somewhere in there and that’s the reason for the ban.
Books like Mein Kampf is acceptable…but not Waldo?
I thought banning any books at all was nuts, but now there are no words to describe it.
BTW, 419 books were challenged because they “promot[ed] a religious viewpoint.” Now, what happened to religious freedom in the US?
Because of a topless woman? Wow. Tell the people who banned it never to go to Dublin, where there’s a giant statue of a mermaid in the middle of one of the main streets. Dubliners called it the Floozy in the Jacuzzi.
Or there used to be. It was moved a few years ago, I think; they replaced it with a giant phallic spike, known as the Stiffy on the Liffey.
This may be the funniest picture I’ve seen in a long time.
http://waldo.wikia.com/wiki/Image:WheresWaldo.Banned.original.jpg
Not a mermaid, and not just topless. She’s having a blast flashing the guy next to her. I do believe I see a nipple! The guy looks happy to be in that situation. The woman he’s with? Not so much.
Sorry, meant to add that the image was censored when the special edition of that first book was released.
http://waldo.wikia.com/wiki/Image:WheresWaldo.Banned.censored.jpg
Well, at least now Waldo can find himself in school libraries once again.
Best parody of children’s book of the 80’s? “Where’s Dan Quayle?” in which a blond Ken-type wearing a blue suit and a red tie and sporting a vapid grin was found in all sorts of unlikely places, places he never should have been—such as the floor of the Senate and the White House.
On the marathon page there’s a streaker. I remember in elementary school that guy was scratched out to save the virgin eyes of the little kids. :’)
Loved the review 🙂
Honestly, who are the daft people getting their knickers in a twist over these books? Given all the horrible things that are in the world I sincerely doubt that many children have been turned to a life of crime and immorality by a glimpse of a tiny cartoon nipple.
“Given all the horrible things that are in the world I sincerely doubt that many children have been turned to a life of crime and immorality by a glimpse of a tiny cartoon nipple.”
But really, if we can save even ONE child by banning such a book, isn’t it worth it?
phhhhbbbbtt, the people who are upset with “Where is Waldo” are probably the same people who think Bert and Ernie on Sesame Street portray an “alternative lifestyle”.
Bert and Ernie are puppets. Is that normal where you come from??
hehehe, Cat, I’m Virginia orginally (anyone remember Jerry Falwell and his “Moral Majority”). Falwell’s group were threatened by Tinky Winky on the Teletubbies. They claimed that the little purple guy with triangle on his head, the divalicious red hand bag and the manly deep voice was a gay icon. I’m not sure if they were behind the Bert and Ernie insanity or if it was another group.
I take it The Magic Roundabout was never aired in your neck of the woods then? I’m trying to imagine what people who were offended by Tinky Winky would have made of Dylan the stoner rabbit. Or, indeed, a whole children’s TV show where everyone appeared to be on LSD.
(my captcha is ‘nations91’ 😉
At least Waldo has a girlfriend. Bert and Ernie have an apartment. With pigeons outside. And Ernie gets naked with rubber duckies. And Bert lies in bed, fantasizing about sheep. It’s all code for depraved big-city lifestyle. You know, Lifestyle.
This has got to be my favourite review so far – who knew there was so much depth to Waldo??
Thanks Brandyllyn!
Hey, the Teletubbies are gay, godless communists. So you know…
they can hang at my house.
I’ve been a lurker here for over two years, but I had to come out to defend Waldo. Poor guy.
And I got the impression from the list, it wasn’t just the one version that was challenged, but the whole series.
I wonder if it’s because people think they lack redeeming literary value. I remember when I was a kid there was always some goddamn parent or teacher trying to keep kids from reading comic books and their ilk, claiming that “that’s not really reading.”
Totally off-topic here, but I actually publish the Wally books, and when the first one in 10 years was published in 2007 I boned up on my Wally trivia. One barely pertinent fact stuck in my head: Didja know he’s called “waldo in the US, “wally” in the UK & Australia, “walter” in Germany, “holger” in Denmark, and my personal favourite: “Rajimapoo” in India
I think it’s so strange that people are worried about kids seeing breasts.