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“As immersive, heartbreaking, and ultimately redemptive as the musical . . . This one is not to be missed.”—Allison Pataki, author of Finding Margaret Fuller
In the 1950s, Oscar Hammerstein is asked to write the lyrics to a musical based on the life of a woman named Maria von Trapp. He’s intrigued to learn that she was once a novice who hoped to live quietly as an Austrian nun before her abbey sent her away to teach a widowed baron’s sickly child. What should have been a ten-month assignment, however, unexpectedly turned into a marriage proposal. And when the family was forced to flee their home to escape the Nazis, it was Maria who instructed them on how to survive using nothing but the power of their voices.
It’s an inspirational story, to be sure, and as half of the famous Rodgers & Hammerstein duo, Hammerstein knows it has big Broadway potential. Yet much of Maria’s life will have to be reinvented for the stage, and with the horrors of war still fresh in people’s minds, Hammerstein can’t let audiences see just how close the von Trapps came to losing their lives.
But when Maria sees the script that is supposedly based on her life, she becomes so incensed that she sets off to confront Hammerstein in person. Told that he’s busy, she is asked to express her concerns to his secretary, Fran, instead. The pair strike up an unlikely friendship as Maria tells Fran about her life, contradicting much of what will eventually appear in The Sound of Music.
A tale of love, loss, and the difficult choices that we are often forced to make, Maria is a powerful reminder that the truth is usually more complicated—and certainly more compelling—than the stories immortalized by Hollywood.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
July 30, 2024 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9780593909775
- File size: 260110 KB
- Duration: 09:01:53
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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December 6, 2024
Moran's (Mata Hari's Last Dance) crowd-pleasing new historical novel posits the question--what did the real-life Maria von Trapp think of the depiction of her family in Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music? In the 1950s, Oscar Hammerstein is writing lyrics for a musical based on Maria's life, but Maria is not a fan. Hoping to give Hammerstein a piece of her mind, Maria instead encounters his assistant Fran, who takes down the details of Maria's remarkable life. Narrator Eileen Stevens breathes life into Fran, capturing her no-nonsense manner and fascination with Maria's story. Natasha Soudek narrates Maria's first-person account in a slightly husky voice, drawing on her own German and Austrian parentage to supply spot-on accents. Fans of dual timelines should enjoy how Moran juxtaposes the events of the autumn of 1959 with several decades' worth of Maria's backstory, a history that is far less sugary than the version portrayed in the musical. The author's note illuminates Moran's interest in the story and provides additional information about the von Trapp children. VERDICT An excellent exploration of one of the world's most beloved stepmothers, highly recommended for historical fiction collections everywhere.--David Faucheux
Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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