I actually didn't finish this book, as the first couple of chapters I read were so exactly like all the versions of Cyrano that I have seen on stage and in the movies, right down to the lines of dialogue, that I got bored and gave up. I was hoping for a more fleshed-out and original treatment of the story, not just a novelization of the play (and screenplay, in the case of the Gerard Depardieu movie that I've seen about five times) that I already know.I guess it would be good for kids who have never read or seen the story in any form before, and perhaps they would enjoy it on that level? But since it wasn't what I was looking for, I found it disappointing.

A beautifully crafted and lyrical short novel based on Rostand's play that was a super quick read for an adult, but I fear would not give enough satisfaction to the crossover audience. ( )

Ashamed of his ugliness, long-nosed Cyrano de Bergerac, a brilliant seventeenth-century poet and expert swordsman in the French army, helps a rival woo and win Roxane, the beautiful cousin Cyrano loves in silence. ( )

Do kids of today need to be familiar with the Cyrano de Bergerac story? Sure, it's not a bad one.

Will this book have them seeking out the original tale or finding more information about the man? Probably not.

Finding an audience might be hard for this book because although it is quite thin, it's not just any kid who is going to pick up this book. Luckily for the audience, McCaughrean starts with the scene of Cyrano making fun of his own nose (use this booktalk and you might have some takers). The rest of the book is too short to get emotionally involved with the characters and too full of French names and historical references for reluctant readers.

Should kids of today know the Cyrano story? Sure,

Are they going to get it from this book? Nope, they'll watch the movie with Steve Martin and Darryl Hannah, laugh at the 80s clothes, but enjoy themselves. ( )