‘Stanley & The Candy Cane Wormhole’ Is the Holiday Book/Activity/Snack Your Family Has Been Waiting For

Depending on your geographic location, cultural identity, and family makeup, the holiday season can mean many things. For some, it is prayer and worship, for others reverent contemplation, and for others still, it’s jubilant revelry. But no matter what you celebrate or how you mark the occasion, it likely all comes down to two important elements: togetherness and tradition.

If you’re in the market for a new family Christmas tradition for you and the ones you love, today’s sponsor has just the thing. Conceived by entrepreneur and engineer Chris Harden—you may remember him from Shark Tank—Stanley & The Candy Cane Wormhole is a delightful story, kid-friendly activity, and holiday treasure hunt all in one.

First and foremost, Stanley & The Candy Cane Wormhole is a beautiful 32-page storybook. Its lush watercolor illustrations and fanciful wordplay introduce us to the titular Stanley, the North Pole’s littlest snow squirrel. Desperate to do more than just brush backup reindeer, Stanley stumbles upon an experimental candy cane wormhole, which (powered by a combination of squirrel fluff and reindeer dander) sucks up Santa’s bag of gifts and scatters its contents far and wide.

In an attempt to atone for his mistake, Stanley too jumps into the wormhole and, using values like patience, problem-solving, bravery, and thankfulness, reclaims the gifts from their disparate hiding places. Unfortunately, by the time he returns, Santa has already begun his annual worldwide run. Stanley takes it upon himself to deliver these delinquent presents and, in the process, revolutionizes toy transportation via the use of elven wormhole technology (and a little squirrelish tenacity)!

Once you and your kids have digested this tale, it’s time to move on to the arts and crafts portion of the show and build your very own candy cane wormhole.

Using only a saucer or small paper plate and a few seasonal ingredients—a marshmallow, four mini candy canes, a chocolate kiss, a dash of reindeer dust (cookie sprinkles), and a hank of squirrel fur (cotton candy)—your family can craft its own enchanting, edible wormhole to help Stanley get you your presents in time for the big day.

But even that’s not all. Stanley & The Candy Cane Wormhole kits also come with activity cards that can be used to launch a fun, interactive household treasure hunt. Each card contains a simple challenge and directions to the next clue, as well as reminders about the positive character traits Stanley used to overcome adversity.

All this makes for a delightful new holiday tradition for your family, and thanks to the power of Kickstarter, you can help bring all this Christmas magic… I mean science to life.

For as little as $10 for a print-and-play version, $20 for a standalone storybook, or $35 for the full physical kit (at an early squirrel discount, of course), your pledge will allow Stanley’s story of perseverance and self-discovery to inspire children for generations to come. Head over to the project’s official Kickstarter page to learn more, explore additional pledge tiers, and help make this Christmas a little brighter for snow squirrels everywhere.