A family move provides Sadie with the perfect opportunity to create a new-if misguided-school persona. By faking a severe peanut allergy, she'll be interesting to her new classmates and earn their instant sympathy. And in fact, although the mean girls she meets initially aren't worth the effort, Sadie does make a few new friends and even acquires an origami-folding, Luddite boyfriend named Zoo. However, trying to stay true to her peanut-allergy alter ego is a challenge. Not only does she have to constantly remember her "condition," Sadie has to side-step the school nurse's increasingly urgent requests for a health form signed by her mom. The charade is exposed when a teacher believes Sadie has eaten a bake-sale cupcake containing nuts. Paramedics are called to the school, and soon everyone knows Sadie has lied. Her new friends are furious and Zoo feels betrayed. Sadie's humiliation and regret are painfully credible, but a glimmer of hope for the future sparks when Zoo makes an overture to stay connected. This fast-paced graphic novel employs a piece of red clothing to make Sadie immediately identifiable in the otherwise black-and-white illustrations. (Age 13 and older)

"A smart, affecting graphic young adult novel," declares the New York Times.

Before you write me off as a delusional psycho, think about what it's like to be thrown into a situation where everyone knows everyone... and no one knows you. Sadie has the perfect plan to snag some friends when she transfers to Plainfield High—pretend to have a peanut allergy. But what happens when you have to hand in that student health form your unsuspecting mom was supposed to fill out? And what if your new friends want to come over and your mom serves them snacks? (Peanut butter sandwich, anyone?) And then there's the bake sale, when your teacher thinks you ate a brownie with peanuts. Graphic coming-of-age novels have huge cross-over potential, and Peanut is sure to appeal to adults and teens alike.