Annabelle Ford loves her home town of Tatura.
The Goulburn Valley Grammar School Year 6 student felt so inspired by the bustling Hogan St that she decided to make it the focus of her picture book, My Main Street.
Annabelle wrote her book for the Greater Shepparton Story Writing Competition, which is an opportunity for Year 5 and 6 students across Greater Shepparton schools to write and illustrate their own stories.
The competition winner was announced at Goulburn Valley Grammar School on Friday, November 24, and nobody was more shocked than Annabelle when her book was announced as the winner.
“I was pretty surprised,” she said.
“I knew that some other people in my grade entered books, and they were really good.”
A panel of three judges deliberated over the 37 entries from 14 different schools, with My Main Street being a stand-out entry for its rhyming and engaging illustrations.
Tatura locals will feel right at home within the pages, with Annabelle describing all the familiar sounds and sights you experience walking down the main street.
Her drawings make the story unique, with each page continuing the journey down Hogan St.
On stage, Annabelle was presented with her very own copy of her book by City of Greater Shepparton Mayor Shane Sali, freshly printed.
“I didn’t expect to see it be properly published,” she said.
“This is probably the first picture storybook that I ever wrote.”
The Ford family is also no stranger to this competition.
Annabelle’s older sister Miriam won the competition in 2020 with their book titled Little Things.
The story writing competition is an initiative of the Greater Shepparton Early Years Language work group, part of Greater Shepparton City Council’s Best Start program.
Annabelle’s winning book will be featured in the local book bag program for the next 12 months and distributed to children attending their three-and-a-half-year maternal and child health visits.
Her book, along with the other 36 entries, will also be on display at Shepparton library.