Itch

by Polly Farquhar

  Lucas held up his pencil. “Give me a sec,” he said, and he drew a cartoon picture of Connor standing on top of the Buckeye Bus. He wrote out Connor in bubble letters.

  “Cool.”

  Sydney asked, “Ready, Isaac?”

  “Yeah.” I nodded.

  “Okay,” Sydney said, “let’s go.”

  I looked at the crinkly piece of paper in my hands and then up at everybody. “Keep your fingers crossed.”

  Then we were off through the blue-tiled hallways until the smell of pizza was stronger than the school smell and we could see the line of kids. Connor stood against the wall. He was the only kid in line holding a lunch box. I smiled at Sydney. She smiled back.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  Every person and every family dealing with food allergies is different with different needs, and they may handle things differently than the characters in this book. My characters with food allergies are based on my family’s experience, and my character with idiopathic angioedema is based on my experience. Thank you for reading about how my characters navigate their world.

  To the kids dealing with food allergies or for whom life has added something extra to your plate (pun not intended): you rock. And so do the people who help take care of you.

  Special shout-out to all the room parents, parents of my kids’ classmates and friends, Girl Scout troop leaders, coaches, and teachers who help keep my kids safe, read food labels, and text me ingredient labels straight from grocery store. Your kindness and awareness has moved me countless times.

  Thank you to Peggy Harkins for her thorough and detailed feedback.

  Deepest thanks to my agent, Alyssa Eisner Henkin, for guiding Itch (and me) on this journey. It goes (almost) without saying that this story is what it is because of her commitment, encouragement, and advice.

  Thanks to the entire team at Holiday House, including Kerry Martin for the jacket design, and especially to my editor Elizabeth Law, who brought insight and a skilled eye to my story. Thanks also to McKenna Nagle for her keen suggestion.

  For my daughters: thank you for your joy and interest in what I do. Having my dream come true is even better because I get to share it with you.

  And finally, deepest gratitude to my husband, who can, for the record, explain any math problem with great patience and detail. All the root beer in here is for you.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Polly Farquhar has a BA from the University at Albany and an MFA in Creative Writing from the Ohio State University. An upstate New York transplant, she lives in Ohio with her family. When she’s not reading or writing, you can find her baking desserts.