Itch

October 15, 2019
Isaac faces so many complications in sixth grade: bullying, loneliness, guilt, his mother's two-month business trip, tornadoes--and the itch. Isaac's been trying to fit in since moving from New York State to rural Ohio. He's learned about football, for, despite his engineer parents' sports apathy, the Ohio State Buckeyes are a religion around this (seemingly predominantly white) town. Isaac even lets his classmates call him Itch, the nickname he earned because of his chronic condition. Isaac has what he calls "the itch" and what the doctors call "idiopathic angioedema." Sometimes, for no apparent reason, Isaac gets an uncontrollable itch and swells up with massive hives, making his hands "look like raw hamburger meat." Of course, Isaac's not the only kid in sixth grade with health troubles. His best friend has life-threatening food allergies, and so does the weird new kid; both need EpiPens. A deft touch with unusual details keeps the narrative from getting bogged down in medical drama: Isaac has an after-school job at a pheasant farm, a preoccupation with the texture of sandwiches, and a lucky peanut shell. Lyrical, pensive prose unexpectedly isn't a harbinger of tragedy; these kids have regular lives, shaped by their grave health concerns but not overwhelmed by them. This meditative #ownvoices read refreshingly treats chronic illness as just one of life's myriad complexities. (Fiction. 10-13)

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Starred review from February 1, 2020

Gr 3-7-After barely escaping the gale-force winds of a tornado with his best friend Sydney, what else could possibly go wrong for sixth grader Isaac Fitch? Quit a lot, apparently. For starters, he still struggles to fit in at school and won't have his mom's sage advice, because she's off on a two-month business trip to China. Having moved to rural Ohio from New York, his father's lackluster interest in Ohio State football is an oddity in a town that oozes Buckeye pride on game day. To top it all off, his classmates call him "Itch" because he has a chronic itching condition called idiopathic angioedema which requires the use of an EpiPen in emergency situations. Isaac's job at Mr. Epple's pheasant farm normally brings him relief from his social acceptance issues, but even that becomes complicated when he's pressured to steal one of Mr. Epple's pheasants. Add to this a sandwich switch at lunch which causes Sydney to be rushed to the hospital in an ambulance due to her food allergies, and you've got stress in overdrive. Isaac is desperate to do whatever it takes to set things right again. While Farquhar, an Ohio State alumni, lays it on heavy with football game day fever of the Midwest, her comedic skills keep the reader from being bogged down with football jargon and terminology. The author's lived experiences of managing her own idiopathic angioedema and her daughters' food allergies gives her firsthand knowledge with chronic illnesses such as the ones Isaac and Sydney have. VERDICT A heartwarming story that encompasses serious issues such as bullying, chronic illness, and peer pressure while navigating the awkward years of middle school. Fans of Gordon Korman's Restart and Jacqueline Davies's Nothing but Trouble should enjoy the symmetry of circumstances in this title.-Sabrina Carnesi, Crittenden Middle School, Newport News, VA

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