Maria is a historical fiction of how real life is messy. It’s not quite the tale of sunshine and rainbows, hope and adversity, that The Sound of Music portrays. It’s understandable that the musical/movie desired to make life seem rosy in a post WW2 era. But it’s incredible to read what truly transpired, and how much less sweet it was.

This book is an emotional read. Real life is emotional. Late 1930s Austria was emotional. The afterward describing how realistic this book is with notes of what happened to everyone made me tear up. I even had a nightmare inspired by this book. This isn’t my normal style of read and I was a little slow with it, but I’m so glad I read it.

If you loved The Sound of Music, I highly recommend this book. It gives you the more real version of events that transpired before, during, and after the time period in the book. You get to see what Maria’s childhood was like, her “love” story, their terrifying escape from Nazi Germany, their immigration to America, 1950s Broadway, Hammerstein’s office environment, what went into producing the musical, and a depiction of Oscar Hammerstein’s last days. Edelweiss being his last song written, and him never seeing the stardom of the movie broke me. Plus Maria’s bow was beautifully sweet.

The level of detail Michelle Moran put into writing this book is incredible. She visited Austria and places Maria truly went. She talked with people who had met the Von Trapps. She read many autobiographies/memoirs from Maria, her children, and even staff from Hammerstein’s office. I commend her on this.

I really enjoyed this fictional account of the von Trapp family, which portrayed a more complex Maria and a more correct version of their lives, especially the harrowing escape from the Nazis. I found it very uplifting, although shocked at how the stage/movie version was not factual in so many ways.

I received an ARC of Maria from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. I very much enjoyed this book. I have loved The Sound of Music my whole life. I had never read anything about Maria or her husband and stepchildren. I was surprised to realize the ages, sexes, and names of the actual Von Trapp children is different than the movie. Additionally, Maria became their governess in the late 1920s, so was with them for more than a decade before the war began. Maria is somewhat unlikable, but it seems that's who she really was. I knew nothing of her traumatic childhood, which explains some of her "quirks." Overall, the book is fairly well written and a short (225 pages), easy read.

If you loved the movies, plays or books about the Sound of Music/von Trapp family, you definitely want to add this book to your TBR list. It’s a quick read, I couldn’t put it down.

The story gives a little different perspective with insight into who Maria and her husband were, and their life together and as a family. It was refreshing to hear Maria was not the saint Roger’s and Hammerstein painted her to be.

I learned a bit about Hammerstein as well, I didn’t realize all he had accomplished in his short life, nor had I ever learned about his death and what a loss it was for humanity. A musical genius creating beautiful, ever lasting musical pieces.

The author has us look deeper into the families singing career and how deeply it affected the children. Rosemary being affected the most, exhibiting duress into adulthood from the pressure and schedules, not to mention she didn’t want to sing at all. The family ends up fractured with not such a happy ending as one might think. Then of course the reason they started touring to begin with, to escape the Nazi invasion. There are some changes and enlightenment there as well.

When the family sold the rights to their story, they lost control over the story portrayal and accuracy. Liberties were taken to alter the story to sell seats. There are corrections in this book, for example the sex portrayed of one child was incorrect, as were some of the add in characters.

The book is based on Maria’s repeated attempts to meet with Hammerstein to correct inaccuracies in her families biography. Maria especially wanted clarification regarding the portrayal of Georg. Portrayed as strict and rigid, he was actually loving, kind and fun. As she meets with Hammerstein’s assistant, the story unfolds as we know it, but we learn many fascinating facts that were not originally presented.

Great read. Highly recommend.

I was intrigued to learn more about the life of Maria von Trapp, but by the end I felt like I was left needing more detail. It almost read too fast for a historical fiction, and I left feeling weird that it’s a fictionalized novel about a woman who didn’t like the fictionalized version of the musical of her life (which she eventually came around to). However, I never wanted to stop reading because I was hooked, despite wanting more.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Sound of Music is an iconic film. Everyone believes they understand the von Trapp family and their heroism through this exposure. How much of the story is true and how much is not? In Maria by Michelle Moran, we explore the story behind the story. As with any story, some events are romanticized.

Maria von Trapp has learned the team of Rogers and Hammerstein plan to premiere a play based upon the family and its escape from Nazi Germany. She is concerned that many events may either be misrepresented or misunderstood. She desires to convince the writers to change any discrepancies. Hammerstein is busy finishing the play and does not want to deal with Maria. Fran Connelly, Hammerstein's assistant, will represent him and meet with Mrs. von Trapp. Fran is suspicious of Maria's intentions initially. After meeting Maria and listening, Fran soon understands Maria's desire to present their lives accurately. Will Fran be able to convey Maria's wishes to Hammerstein?

I enjoyed the opportunity to learn more about the von Trapps and their journey to America. Michelle Moran tells this story in a balanced manner, never becoming overly sentimental. Maria has her foibles as well as her attributes. Understanding what the family did endure as their beloved Austria fell to the Nazis provides readers with a greater appreciation of the family's challenges. After the story ends, Moran thoughtfully includes a brief update on each von Trapp family member, concluding the family's saga. As with her other books, Michelle Moran brings a vibrant understanding of historical events and the people that inhabit them.

I appreciate the opportunity to read and review this book. Thank you Megan Whalen, Random House Publishing Group, Michelle Moran, and NetGalley.

This book was excellent! Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this book, as everyone enjoys the Sound of Music. I would consider this an excellent “light read” of the life of The Von Trap family. It seems their lives were challenging I felt the author wrote their lives with much levity instead of adequately articulating their hardships. I’m going to overlook that, and just say it was a fantastic book.

This novel was one I couldn't put down. I'm a fan of Moran's other work, but this was the first one I read that was set in (relatively) modern history. It does a good job making the familiar interesting; I was trying to anticipate where Maria's real life would be different than the well-known musical and movie. There were a few little Easter eggs for Broadway aficionados along the way too!

Maria, A Novel of Maria Von Traps by Michelle Moran. For fans of the Sound of Music!

I rate this 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4).

I love the Sound of Music and wanted to read something different than my usual genres, and the movie only shares a sliver of who Maria is. I loved learning more about the von Trapp Family and Maria’s life. Maria had a difficult childhood that had her grasping for control as she got older. Opposite of the film Maria was the more rigid and harsher disciplinary than compared to Georg who was the more cheery loving one. Their love also started one sided, Maria loved the kids first then later fell in love with Georg after they were married.

We follow Fran who is an employee of Oscar Hammerstein, the writer of the Broadway musical. Fran is handling the complaints from Maria about the musical as it is being produced. And through this encounter we learn the true story of Maria and her family.

Thank you, NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

When I saw this book, I knew I had to read it. The Sound of Music is my favorite movie hands down, and I loved reading about the behind the scenes of the beginning of the play and background in to Maria's life. I had read one of Maria's autobiographies, but it has been many years. I knew she was more harsh than the movie makes her out to be, but the book put a whole different spin on it, by shining a light on how she grew up. It made her seem more human and helped me to understand more of where she was coming from. I loved getting to know which parts of the play/movie were made up and which were true. I also loved learning about Hammerstein, and how he really cared about Maria's concerns. If you are a fan of the play or movie, this is a must read!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

What drew me in was the perspective of Maria Von Trapp and the play. The idea that Maria Von Trapp was not happy with the musical play by Rodgers and Hammerstein and wanted to get the other point of view. Really interested me having only seen the movie it made me want to read more.

It goes back to Maria Von Trapp before she was a Von Trapp and her upbringing as a child, her love for music that was brought on by her father going to be a teacher and her fascination with Nuns.

The Other Point of View is Fran Hammerstein's assistant and the finessing of the musical where Maria wants to tell her story and doesn't want a recreation of the German film. Fran listens to the story which then goes back to the rest of the life up until the play so you play around with a form of a dual timeline Frans life and Maria in her various forms the ones we know well from the sound of Music Movie and the ones we don't which are more personal.

You also learn more about the famous Hammerstein which I really appreciated I also appreciated the in depth of research that went on afterward. Of course the writing style is amazing, clear and great and every voice is clear. You know who is talking and where.

I highly recommend this book so much when it's out I would love to buy it! This Arc was given to me by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about the Von Trapps from reading this book. I was surprised to see how different their lives were compared to the movie and play. I also enjoyed the parts of the book related to Oscar Hammerstein and the making of the Broadway play.
The author cleverly told the story in an appealing way, and I flew through the book. Fans of The Sound of Music will appreciate this book. I highly recommend this book.

This book was so heartwarming and beautifully written. The Sound of Music is a favorite of mine, so a book based on the life of Maria Von Trapp was a must read for me.

The story is told from dual time lines a follows Maria's life from Austria and the struggles she must have faced during the war, her love of music, her becoming a step mother to so many children, and their escape to America.

The book is thought provoking and revealing. So much was left unsaid and glossed over. In the movie.

Five stars. Highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Dell for this amazing book.

I grew up loving The Sound of Music movie, so I was very excited to have a book on this topic! I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the true history of the von Trapp family, as well as getting a behind the-scenes look into the world of producing a musical in the 1950s. I greatly admire Oscar Hammerstein, so a glimpse into his life was a treat! This book was such a fresh, honest depiction of both timelines. Highly recommend, especially if you're a fan of The Sound of Music.

Growing up, sound of music was one of my favorites. Being able to read about the real maria was awesome. I got to learn more about who she was. I think that this is a must read, especially if sound of music was a favorite

Something I have always loved about Michelle Moran's writing is that I will learn something while also being entertained. That remains true after reading Maria. I was thrilled to see she's be writing about the Von Trapp family, being a huge Sound of Music lover, as well as having worked with one of the Von Trapp grandchildren. This story was wonderful, moving between Maria's story and the people involved in creating the musical. While I know the interactions were fabricated, the stories themselves, coming from trusted sources, were often fact, and I loved to know more about the family. I enjoyed the whole journey very much.

Michelle Moran adds new lyrics to a well loved song.

Fans of The Sound of Music will love this book but also the side story of behind the scenes making of a Broadway hit.

If you loved The Sound of Music like I did as a child, this book is definitely for you. This book was a perfect blend of a partial retelling of the story of the Sound of Music mixed with interesting new perspective on the matriarch Maria and the rest of the Von Trapp Family. I was very nostalgic but also incredibly reflective as I moved through the story because there was so much more depth to the Von Trapp Family and their circumstances than the movie portrayed. Character development is probably the best part of this story, as I really felt connected to the characters and also felt like I came to understand them so much more. This was definitely a great read and I would highly recommend this book.

Than you NetGalley for the ARC.

I loved The Sound of Music as a child. I managed to break the VHS from watching it so much! Even with as much as I watched the movie, I didn’t know much about the real Maria Von Trapp. The dual timeline was an excellent way for me to learn about the real Maria, in contrast with the one I know from my childhood. This book is great for both historical fiction lovers and fans of the movie. It’s well researched and will keep you engaged.
Thank you Random House Publishing-Ballantine for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book is a beautiful tribute to the Von Trapp Family.

All lovers of musicals will delight in this backstage pass to the writing of The Sound of Music.

This only downside, if you are very familiar with the movie and stage show, you probably know most of this already. I wish the author had included more of the B storyline (Fran, Hammerstein, the writing of the musical, talking to Maria).

I appreciated all the facts that set the record straight and the research that has gone into this book. A great read for musical lovers, just wanted more of those backstage details!