Younger Pete decides to fake food poisoning in order to avoid another mind-numbing day at school during the stretch between winter and spring breaks. In an adventure that leads him from home to school and the various sites around Wellsville, Younger Pete sees a classmate of his in a new light, gets a marshmallow likeness of president Martin Van Buren stuck in his nose, and gains a new perspective on the world that can only be appreciated on a sick day.