Michele Coulombe (Children's Literature)
This dynamic adaptation of Twelfth Night brings new life and charm to a play approximately four hundred years old and offers a terrific entree for first-time Shakespeare readers. Told in narrative format, the author retains all the original characters and includes many of the play's well-known lines such as, "If music be the food of love, play on!" The story of how Viola and Sebastian, twins separated at sea and thinking each other dead, both eventually land in ancient Illyria, find each other and find love is long and complicated. Illyria is a world of hidden and mistaken identities, of misplaced love and love fulfilled, of leeches and princes. However, amidst all of this confusion and treachery, the author successfully weaves together the numerous characters and plotlines to present a whirlwind of a comedy. The madcap spirit of the play remains intact. The accompanying illustrations, with their marvelously expressive characters and historic costumes, favorably enhance the book's text. 2003, Dial Books, $16.99. Ages 8 to 12.

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, January 1, 2003 (Vol. 71, No. 1))
Coville, who's done so well with these in the past (Romeo and Juliet, 1999, etc), prefaces his latest Shakespearean retelling with the claim that its themes of trying on a new identity and having to yearn in silence for another will carry particular resonance for young readers as "the struggle of adolescence in microcosm!" Perhaps-but even more attractive, to teenagers and preadolescents alike, is the nonstop pace with which pranks, jests, twists, and mistaken identities in this tale of shipwrecked, separately rescued twins, tumble over each other. Coville creates a capable digest, but even his antic gifts are severely tested by Raglin's leaden tableaus, all of which feature frozen, staring figures in period dress, their glum or exaggeratedly clownish visages lacking any saving sympathy or real humor. It's hard to believe that this is the same witty artist whose interpretation of The Wolf Who Cried Boy (2002) shared equally in the humor. Prospective audiences or cast members will get a clear sense of the play's tangled plot from this, but will have to see it performed to fully appreciate its sheer hilarity and joyful climax. 2003, Dial, $16.99. Category: Picture book. Ages 9 to 12. © 2003 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

Preston Harper (The Lorgnette - Heart of Texas Reviews (Vol. 16, No. 4))
In this presentation of Shakespeare’s TWELFTH NIGHT, Bruce Coville gives a reliable summary of the bard’s great comedy. This summary is a bit less tedious than shorter ones, and it is spiced up by the colorful illustrations. Because this comedy is complicated by numerous characters and several subplots, a general knowledge of what’s going on will greatly enhance the enjoyment of youngsters who are potential first-time viewers. A weakness of this summary is that it does not explain why Malvolio is the butt of such vitriolic satire. A few words about the popular view of Puritans in Shakespeare’s day would be most helpful even for adult readers; however, since the play is delightful, and the illustrations by Tim Raglin are large and amusing, this would be a good book for parents and teachers to read aloud and discuss with children. Nonfiction (822). Grades 3-8. 2003, Dial, Unpaged., $16.99. Ages 8 to 14.