Remember the Sears Wish Book? Man Goes Viral for Sharing His Copy — and the Memories that Come with It (Exclusive)
In one TikTok video, Ryan Forbes opened a 1996 Sears Wish Book, which has since garnered more than 600,000 views
In one TikTok video, Ryan Forbes opened a 1996 Sears Wish Book, which has since garnered more than 600,000 views Candace Forbes; Ryan Forbes Ryan Forbes with his Sears Holiday books collection:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(jpeg)/sears-holiday-catalog-collection-ryan-forbes-05-120924-bbe1dcbbf0884fb5933c8f3a11348ac0.jpg "Ryan Forbes, Sears Holiday books")
A couple of years ago, Ryan Forbes was cleaning out his grandmother's house shortly after she died when he came across a 1998 Sears holiday catalog in perfect condition.
Upon finding it, Forbes, a writer and illustrator from Gimli, Manitoba, Canada, flipped through the pages. Instantly, he was transported back in time.
"I don’t know if it was the smell, the feel of the glossy pages, or all the toys I still kind of wanted as an adult, but it was the strongest feeling of nostalgia I had ever experienced — and it was just flipping through a catalog … so I kept it," he tells PEOPLE exclusively.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Candace Forbes Ryan Forbes with his Sears holiday book collection
Since then, Forbes has collected six Sears holiday catalogs. While he has a few from his childhood, he’s also managed to find others at garage sales and online. He says the catalogs can range in price from $25 to $150 or more, depending on their condition and the year.
Last year, Forbes brought one out to show his kids. While they weren’t interested at all, he found a few items amusing. So, he recorded a quick video of himself flipping through it and posted it to TikTok. Soon, comments started flooding in, with viewers asking to see the toy section and requesting more videos.
In one video, Forbes opens a sealed 1996 Sears Wish Book, which happens to be his favorite catalog he owns. Since posting, the video has garnered more than 600,000 views and 1,800 comments.
"I would watch if you flipped through every single page," one user commented.
"Oh man, I wish my kids got to experience the excitement of the Wish Book coming out every year. My brother and I would spend hours looking through that thing. Good times," another person wrote.
Someone else added, "I miss circling stuff for hours in this and then not getting any of it."
@ryan.elf Like it was just delivered! Opening a sealed Christmas 1996 Sears Wish Book
