When Alex, the new boy in first grade, tries to make others notice him with his boasts about rocket toys and ponies, his plan backfires. The first graders don’t like liars and refuse to have anything more to do with him. However, on the day of the class Christmas party, he helps Jim look for his missing Christmas decoration, and is then given a second chance. Alex realizes that it is not difficult to make friends after all! This newly-illustrated reissue of Miriam Cohen’s book deals sensitively with the challenges that children face when they begin social interaction at school. Ronald Himler’s new watercolor illustrations give the first graders distinctive personalities and provide a riveting picture of the everyday tragicomedy of a first grade classroom.