THE SLEEPY main drag at Boolaroo was transformed into a fantastical realm of wonder as characters from beloved children's books leapt off the pages and onto the street.
Slappy the Dummy from Goosebumps, a gaggle of Gryffindor students and the tin man from the Wonderful Wizard of Oz marched down Main Street in one of the Hunter's longest Book Week parades.
Speers Point Public School students and teachers dressed the part and principal Chris Payne, who came as a garden gnome sitting on a toadstool inspired by Andy Griffiths' book Wish You Weren't Here!, said he could not have been prouder of their efforts.
"Rather than just parading through our school we actually wanted to make it a community event," he said.
"It's a real point of pride for me."
More than 250 students and staff were part of the parade, dressing to the theme of 'Reading is Magic'.
Among them were best mates Travis Hayes, 12, who came as a Pokemon and Tayge Wallace, 11, who dressed up as a mix between King Kong and 'Harambe', a gorilla who lived at the Cincinnati Zoo.
"RIP Harambe," he said.
"We were originally gonna go as Deadpool and Wolverine but my costume got refunded and his wouldn't come in time," he said.
Parent Jenna Nichol helped her seven-year-old son Beau Vernon transform into his favourite character Slappy the Dummy, complete with ventriloquist doll, on Thursday morning.
"He got right into it when he was about three years old," Ms Nichol said.
"Last year he came as the Grinch, this boy loves a dress up.
"It's just a good vibe, my kids have always been right into dressing up and the excitement of it all.
"Everyone gets right into it and it's something that this school does really well, I think it all comes from Mr Payne because he's so into it, as you can see."
En route the students connect with local businesses and the wider community, stopping to wave at the Speers Point library, Lake Macquarie council and Great Beginnings Preschool.
The number of community members joining in or lining up to watch continues to grow each year.
Mr Payne said it's a marvellous way of sharing and promoting a love of reading, which is a "bullseye" on their target of improving literacy for everyone.
