A special book tour will be making a stop in Barrington.

On Wednesday, Nov. 4, Jeff Kinney, author of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid book series, will hold a drive-through appearance at the Barrington Town Hall campus. The event is part of Mr. Kinney's Pool Party Tour celebrating the release of his latest book, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Deep End.

The tour stop in Barrington — one of only 20 he has planned along the East Coast — will feature a pool party-themed experience. Attendees will drive their car through a series of stations located across the Barrington Town Hall property. There's a check-in where they will receive some give-away items and a special bookmark. There's also a lifeguard dunk tank station, a tiki hut, and a trip underwater.

The final stop on the drive-through will be with the famous author himself. Mr. Kinney will use a six-foot pool-skimmer to deliver the signed copy of his newest book to each car-load of visitors.

"He's been creative his entire life with his events," said Katie Rendine, the business development and event coordinator at Barrington Books. "But not to this extent."

The ticketed event is specially designed to follow the necessary social distancing and mask-wearing requirements; people will drive their cars through the different experiences set up on the town hall property.

“2020 hasn’t been fun for kids,” Mr. Kinney said. “We’re excited to be throwing drive-thru parties that kids and their families can look forward to. We can’t wait to put on our masks, hit the road, and create happy memories for all the fans we meet along the way.”

Families attending the event are encouraged to "Wimpify" their cars for the drive-through experience, and the vehicle deemed best-decorated will win a boxed set of Diary of a Wimpy Kid books.

Mr. Kinney went all-out on this tour in an effort to help support independent book stores. In addition to writing the wildly-popular Wimpy Kid series, Mr. Kinney also owns an independent book store in Massachusetts, where he lives.

Plenty of support

Ms. Rendine said Barrington officials were more than happy to host the special book tour drive-through event, gladly sharing use of the town hall property.

"The town was thrilled with the idea. The town manager and his assistant have been phenomenal," Ms. Rendine said. "There was no hesitation whatsoever."