Story of elusive emu brought to life in book by Central Illinois author, artist

CENTRAL ILLINOIS (WCIA) — Over the past few years, WCIA has chronicled the journey of an infamous emu that made its way across Central Illinois. Now, the story of “Lady Emu” is being brought to life in a book.

The bird escaped from a farm in Danville in 2022, along with nearly a dozen others, and went on quite the adventure. Most of the emus that escaped were caught relatively quickly — except for one.

The lone emu on the loose was on the run for almost two years. During that time, she made her way from I-74, Gifford, Homer and many places in between. “Lady emu” was eventually captured in 2024.

Author Emily Chappell and illustrator Jennifer Heidrick joined WCIA 3’s Amanda Brennan in the studio to talk about what creating the book looked like.

Every community in Vermilion County is highlighted in the book.

“A lot of those small communities get overlooked because there’s not a lot of big news happening in those communities but they’re full of great people,” Chappell said. “I thought it would be a good story to put down on the page.”

You can learn more about how to purchase a book on Facebook. Proceeds from the book will go towards Vermilion County Farm Bureau Ag In The Classroom, a program which promotes Vermilion County agriculture through education in schools and the community.