A local couple has written and illustrated a children’s book that will teach young readers how to react to the unexpected and how to be inspired by others.

Delise French wrote the book, published under her maiden name Delise Gallegos. Her husband, Aric French Sr., illustrated it.

“We kind of tell stories all the time,” she said. “Laughter inspires me.”

She said friends laugh when they hear the stories from the French household. They told the family that they should write a book, so they finally took the plunge.

The book features Fred Ferguson, a fish who is “kind of like a little boy,” French said.

“(Children) are worried at a very young age about making sense of the things that happen along the way,” French said. “They need to know that everything bad that happens, you can still survive.”

In the book, Fred Ferguson meets GUNC, a robot fallen from a scientific experiment; Crusty Rusty Tin Can, a barnacle-encrusted tuna can; and Pearl, an oyster.

“It’s about how to deal with the unexpected,” French said. “We’re inspired by our loved ones but also inspired by strangers we meet along the way.”

French said others’ reaction to the book has been positive. Children love it and even sleep with the book, she said she’s heard from parents.

She said she’s planning several sequels featuring Ferguson and other characters who live on Caramel Corn Ranch and the sea surrounding it.

Her son, Aric Jr., 10, has inherited his father’s talent for illustration and doodles on everything, French said.

The book is available at the Suffolk Christian Bookstore, 900 N. Main St.; Mi Lindo, 914 N. Main St.; All About Virginia & More, 120 N. Main St.; and Shooting Star Gallery on the Eastern Shore, 22 Strawberry St., Cape Charles.