Morgan and Moffat, the Barker twins, are excited for school to start. Once there, Moffie sets out to earn as many gold stars as possible, while the more laid-back Morgie quietly goes about making firm friends with a few classmates. But after a few days, Moffie is given a gentle lecture from the teacher, who asks her to give other kids a chance to answer questions. Suddenly she realizes she"s been so busy collecting stars, she hasn"t made any friends yet. "I"ll get gold stars and Morgie can get friends," she thinks. But then Morgie"s time in the sun (or stars) finally arrives, when the teacher asks a question he can most definitely answer. By the end of the first week, both Morgie and Moffie have friends and stars--and they are in complete agreement about one thing: "We LOVE school!" Tomie de Paola modeled Morgie and Moffie after two of his four charismatic Welsh terriers. De Paola, the Newbery Honor author/illustrator of 26 Fairmount Avenue and many other well-loved children"s books, captures the drama and dilemmas of school and illustrates the best way to find a balance between friendships and studies. His understated, humorous text is accompanied by highly appealing illustrations of the young pups in acrylic on handmade watercolor paper. Here is the perfect first-day-of-school book for the little Morgies and Moffies in every classroom. (Ages 4 to 7) --Emilie Coulter