Hebe sounded the alarm by waking owners Louis Campbell and Viv Smith-Campbell, who in turn went door to door alerting neighbours to encroaching flames in October 2020.
Young authors and illustrators Audra Davis, Bailey Bacchus, Romy Menard and Dani Lloyd said Hebe the Hero was a year in the making.
Bailey said the story had involved a lot of background work, including interviews with community members and emergency services.
"We did a lot of research. It was just real great interviewing a bunch of people and learning a bunch of new stuff about the fire," she said.
The blaze was sparked by an electrical fault and burned for nine days, destroying 48 homes.
Hebe, who was generally quiet and calm, also barked loudly to help with the evacuation.
Dani said she learned just how valuable Hebe was while working on the book.
"The community really needed that dog at the time to help rescue them," she said.
Hebe, 13, died days after the fire, having received a Fire and Emergency New Zealand bravery award.
Mr Campbell said it was moving seeing her story in print and the children had captured a dog "with a heart of gold" that played a vital role on the night of the fire.
"It was something really special and we knew then that this is a piece of history," he said.
"Hebe was fearless and she was incredibly intelligent as all these heading dogs, Border collies, are.
"She just wanted everything to be right for everybody. She just wanted everyone to be well and you could feel that with her," Mr Campbell said.
"Hebe was always really attached to children and I think that’s part of why it’s so beautiful that the pupils got to write about it. I would say that Hebe would have loved the book and she would love to be here and she would love to go to the book launch," he said.
Twizel Area School assistant principal Melissa McLellan said she had secured Ministry of Education funding to get the story printed.
She said it was special watching the students’ hard work come to fruition.
"It’s been pretty amazing. The other day when I gave the girls their copy of the book it was really lovely watching their faces light up," she said.
The proceeds would help fund school projects of the authors’ choosing, while 50 cents from every copy sold would also support the Ōhau Conservation Trust.
Ms Smith-Campbell, who chairs the trust, said the funds would go to a community planting project.
Some of the 500 printed copies would be distributed through retailers around the country and others would be available to purchase through the school.— RNZ
