'Pete & Pickles' will be a big hit with all ages

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Do you have cooties?

If not you, then you might think somebody in your class does. The person with cooties is usually the boy or girl that nobody likes. He or she doesn't have many friends, and you might think he or she is weird. Who wants to play with a weird kid?

Not you, right?

But sometimes, the best friends come from the most unusual places. In the new book "Pete & Pickles" by Berkeley Breathed, you'll see a friendship that nobody ever thought would happen.

Life for Pete the pig was perfectly predictable. It also was practical and uncomplicated. Everything was neat and clean and there were no surprises -- until the night of the storm.

Pigs like Pete don't do well in water, so when it began to rain, Pete went to bed early to get the bad dreams out of the way. But his dreams were interrupted by a noise. He turned on the light and was suddenly grabbed by a nose that belonged to a very wet elephant.

When a circus clown came to the door and took away the elephant named Pickles, Pete was relieved. Elephants were messy. But when, on his walk, he saw a circus tent, Pete was curious.

In the dark corner of a dark tent sat a sad elephant. How could he leave her? Pete reached for the key, freed Pickles, and snuck her home. But elephants are dirty and they snore. Pete knew Pickles couldn't stay.

The next morning, he was going to send her on her way, but Pickles made some improvements to Pete's yard. Then she took Pete on a Niagara Falls adventure, sort of. They went on a Swiss excursion, sort of. They went to Tahiti, Paris and Venice, sort of. Pickles had lots of plans for fun.

But fun didn't include Pete's private stuff. He got very mad when Pickles started to mess with his things, and he sent her away.

Lucky for Pete, she didn't have a chance to go.

I was torn about this book. Is it a children's book about friendship, or is it a grown-up fairy tale about love?

I've decided it's both.

For kids, "Pete & Pickles" is about making friends with the last person you'd consider as a pal. It's about being open to new, exciting possibilities, even when they seem very scary. And it's about the sacrifices true friends will make for one another at the worst moment ever.

I highly recommend that you steal this book away from the kids and read it for yourself, paying close attention to the illustrations that Breathed adds to his story. Grown-ups will see the fear and apprehension in Pete, as well as the enticing potential for adventure. We of a Certain Age will read his expressions and know exactly what he's experiencing. Alas, we've been there.

Pick up this book and introduce your child to this sweet story of love, friendship and messy elephants. "Pete & Pickles" is gigantically adorable.

Terri Schlichenmeyer's book reviews appear weekly in the View.