When ten-year-old Anne, despite her excellent academic record, is turned down by her first choice grammar school, she knows it is because her parents are poor working class people. But not only did this school reject her, the official letter arrived too late for her to apply to other schools, let alone appeal the decision. As she waits and waits for the letter, she thinks there must be something wrong with her, and she begins to obsess about her toes that look different from another girl's. Eventually, not wanting to hurt anyone else, she learns nothing is wrong with her.

The author, Christina St Clair, created this story based on an experience in her life. When she was ten years old, with excellent 11+ exam results, it was expected she would easily be accepted by any Grammar school. But the school she most favored not only turned her down but made it impossible for her to apply to other schools. Only with the help of her former headmaster was she granted another interview at a school much further away from her home. The school that reluctantly accepted the author was awful! Thus, she created a happy ending at another school, Oakridge School for Girls.