I know that the movie the Sound of Music isn't historically historically accurate nor accurate of Maria's actual life but I still enjoy watching the movie. I mean what's not to love about Captain von Trapp ripping the flag in half and throwing it on the ground. While Maria is historical fiction not non fiction it is a closer account of Maria's life. And reads easier than Maria's own book. I did learn a lot about the von Trapp's than I knew better and it didn't ruin the movie for me. It in many ways helped me to better understand everything around it.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.

This book made me a fan of Michelle Moran. After finishing, I quickly added her previous works to my TBR list on Goodreads! What an epic story with a new perspective!

Loved this. I really enjoyed everything about this. I loved the story completely. It will stay with me for a long time. I appreciate that the author has very strong voice - one I really enjoy.

Maria von Trapp shows up at the Broadway rehearsals for “The Sound of Music” in 1959. She is disturbed by the deviations of the script from her autobiography and demands a meeting with Oscar Hammerstein.

The novel follows two timelines: the making of the Broadway production and Maria’s reminiscences of her early years in Austria. Along the way, the reader learns how and why artistic decisions are made. For example, the eldest von Trapp child was a boy, not 16-year-old Liesel. We learn about Maria’s childhood -- orphaned and raised in an abusive household until she was sent to the convent – and that Maria and the Captain were married for 10 years before the family fled Austria.

The novel also depicts some of what it takes to bring a show to the stage. Hammerstein became ill, and “Edelweiss” was the last song he would write.

Perfect for fans of the movie. Will make a great holiday gift, particularly for older readers.

Loved this look "behind the scenes" into the true story of Maria Von Trapp. I was not a huge fan of the Sound of Music, but was curious about the true story. I found it even more interesting than the story portrayed in the movie!

As a huge fan or the Sound of Music this book was a must read for me! This books shows the life of Maria von Trapp during the time period before and during the famous movie! This is a must read for any fan!!

This historical fiction focuses on Maria Van Trapp’s life from her time at the Abby, until the Broadway premier of the stage version of The Sound of Music, in 1964. . I believe most fans of the Sound of Music know that parts of that movie are fictional, but this book clarifies that and much more! The story begins in New York City, 1959, as Oscar Hammerstein’s team is wrapping up the preparations for the premier of the Sound of Music. It is discovered that Maria is not happy with the script and demands changes to be made. In order to please her, Hammerstein’s young secretary, Fran is told to meet with Maria and work things out. In doing so, we begin to learn about Maria’s life as a child, later in the Abby and then with Georg and his children. The book continues with the dual timeline, Maria and her life and Fran and the team working on the musical. Moran makes it clear that she wants her readers to see the von Trapp story from Maria’s perspective. Without going into any spoilers, this book was an amazing story. Learning about Maria’s life as a child and how that played a role as an adult was eye opening. This was an easy , quick read. The author’s notes at the end are a must! Michelle Moran explains her research and also gives us an update on the von Trapp children- fascinating information!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for providing this ARC. This review is my own opinion.

I’ve always loved The Sound of Music, so I was excited to dive into Maria and learn more about the real-life woman behind the beloved film. While the book differs from the movie in several ways, I was happy to find that it didn’t take away from my love for the film—it actually enriched it. Michelle Moran beautifully brings Maria’s true story to life, offering more depth and insight into her journey. If you enjoy The Sound of Music, this is a great companion to the movie, and it gives a fuller picture of the inspiring woman at its heart.

Maria by Michelle Moran is the real story of the Maria Von Trapp from the Sound of Music. Never could a book more meaningful to me than this because after almost 57 years on this earth, I’ve never watched The Sound of Music in its entirety. I’ve seen bits and pieces over the years, but never from start to finish, so for me, this not only led be to watch it, but also to learn so much!

This book is told in both the past and the present. Maria’s childhood, her life as a G-d’s servant, and how she came to be the nanny of the Van Trapp children is in the past, while life in the present shows her disdain for how Hammerstein, of the famed Rodgers and Hammerstein duo, was misrepresenting how her life really was. Much of the family’s escape from the Nazis was not portrayed correctly and Maria was adamant that changes be made.

Maria was a strong woman and her ability to go from nun, to nanny, to mother and wife was remarkable. Her good sense and kindness had all the kids supporting her and their father’s union. Learning about the rigorous musical touring that the family endured was eye-opening as well. This is a wonderful escape into the Von Trapp world and how the family unit was shown in the musical/movie versus how life really was! This was an easy, interesting read that I enjoyed greatly!

Like most people my age, we grew up singing every Rodgers & Hammerstein song from the movie . The movie is a classic I'll always love. Years ago, I read Maria Von Trapp's memoir and got a different image than that of Julie Andrews version of Maria. Both were so interesting. Now author Michelle Moran has written an historical fiction version of the Von Trapp family as well as insight into Rodgers & Hammerstein's work on bringing this story to Broadway. It was very interesting learning the inside story of how we got the play, the music most still know by heart and the many books written about this family.

This book was enjoyable, interesting and enlightening. I highly recommend it! I've now ordered a physical book for my library.

My thanks to Net Galley and Dell for an advanced copy of this e-book.

This is the story of Maria von Trapp told in part from her perspective. It is based on interactions between Maria and an associate of Oscar Hammerstein. The Sound of Music glamorized the life of her family and this novel provides a different angle. Highly recommend for lovers of historical fiction.

What's not to love? Moran is an excellent historical fiction writer, a favorite fine, and here, the real Maria stands up to tell her story. The hills are alive. Indeed.

Like many others, I chose to read this because I love The Sound of Music and am fascinated by the time and characters. This book took it a little deeper into the life of Maria and exposed us to the "behind the scenes' reasoning to a lot of her actions.

The way the author tangled the creation of the musical with the true life of Maria was masterful! The timeline was easy to follow and the story flowed well. Of course, I had to rewatch the musical on Disney immediately after finishing the book. It felt a little different to watch after Maria exposed some of the untruths in her story. It definitely made me do some Google searches to find out more!

Easy, chummy read that is both informative and entertaining. Didn't know how the musical veered away from the truth, so those differences kept my interest. Perfect for any fan of the musical and a welcome break from all my fantasy reads.

Maria by Michelle Moran is a book about the real life story of Maria Von Trapp, the woman that The Sound of Music is based on. In this story, Maria is responding to the play that is the original rendition of her story. She is offended that they have changed her story and particularly upset about the unjust portrayal of her husband, Baron Von Trapp. The book takes place during the 1950's when Oscar Hammerstein was in the process of writing the lyrics to the musical score for the musical. Maria is prevented from meeting with Hammerstein, and instead, she is redirected to meet with his secretary, Fran, who becomes intrigued by Maria and her story, and determined to get the real story to Hammerstein. Since I have been a fan of the Sound of Music movie since I first saw it as a child, I was very interested in reading this book. Ms. Moran does a wonderful job of describing the meetings between Maria and Fran, and the eventual effect that these meetings had on Maria and her family as well as on Fran's personal life. I highly recommend this book to anyone that can't get enough of The Sound of Music, or anyone interested in Historical Fiction. Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing for giving me the opportunity to preview this book in exchange of an honest review.

LOVED THIS BOOK! Must read for any fans of Historical Fiction and fans of Sound of Music!!

I recently decided to rewatch Sound of Music before my trip to Austria. This led me to researching about Maria Von Trapp as I was curious as to how accurate the musical was. I ended up stumbling upon this book, and was fortunate enough to get a copy from Netgalley in exchange for a honest review.

I loved how this book was written, between Maria’s point of view and from the point of view of Hammerstein’s assistant. As a musical aficionado I loved getting an inside glimpse into the making of such an iconic production. I also loved learning about the true stories of what actually happened to the Von Trapp family after Hitler took over Austria, as well as where Maria came from. I feel like I understand more about why Maria is the way she is after learning about her childhood.
Definitely worth the read :)

*thank you to NetGalley and Dell for an eARC of this book in exchange for my review*

If you loved The Sound of Music, you absolutely need to read this book. This fictionalized retelling of Maria Von Trapp’s life sets the record straight, where the Rogers and Hammerstein story deviated.

Michelle Moran sets up (the real) Oscar Hammerstein’s (fictional) secretary as our frame story FMC. Fran is tasked with interviewing and appeasing Maria Von Trapp when Maria storms into the rehearsal of The Sound of Music in protest of the script written to depict her life. In these interviews, we get an insightful, yet dramatized, look at Maria’s life—from her lonely and painful childhood, to her triumphant tour across America, and even the letdown of the years that followed.

Maria’s story is so captivating. While quite different from the charmed life that we all loved in The Sound of Music, Moran’s narrative paints hardship alongside the charm of her life in an honest and thoughtful way. The most difficult part of this book for me was the frame story. Fran is a lovable character, and of course I wanted to root for her. I just didn’t feel like I got to see enough of her, so it was a little difficult to empathize in her love and loss.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. The author did a nice job of tying in a lot of information across various sources. I appreciated the care with which she presented this beloved story.

Sound of Music fans will love this historical fiction depiction of Maria von Trapp’s well known story. Alternating between 1959 when Hammerstein was writing what would be his last musical and Maria’s life starting from an early age, Michelle Moran’s novel gives readers an in depth look in to the making of the beloved musical and the person that inspired it.
Fran Connelly is a secretary for Oscar Hammerstein and an inspiring writer. When Maria von Trapp asks for an audience with Hammerstein to correct the many errors in his upcoming musical about her life, he sends Fran instead. With rehearsals already underway Fran knows there may be little she can do to rewrite any creative liberties taken with the storyline but over many weeks she better understands Maria’s story as she tells it herself. Will Maria endorse the musical and will Fran be able to influence Hammerstein to hit the right notes of this love story?
The novel’s framework reminded me a lot of “Finding Dorothy” by Elizabeth Letts and I think historical fiction fans will greatly enjoy both novels.

A very interesting story that changed the way I seen Maria from the sound of music. Very interesting and I love how the truth is told and they don’t shy away from sharing choices Maria made. Overall a great read for fans of Maria and her family!

Maria by Michelle Moran offers a fascinating glimpse behind the Hollywood version of Maria von Trapp’s life, exploring the true story that inspired The Sound of Music. Set in the 1950s, the novel follows Oscar Hammerstein as he prepares to bring Maria’s life to Broadway. However, when Maria sees how her story is being altered, she sets out to confront Hammerstein, only to form an unexpected bond with his secretary, Fran.

Through this relationship, Maria shares her real experiences—revealing a life of love, hardship, and survival that is far more complex than the musical suggests. Moran’s novel is a compelling reflection on how truth is often sacrificed for entertainment, and how real life is always more nuanced than the versions we see on stage or screen. A beautifully written tale of resilience, Maria is a must-read for fans of historical fiction and The Sound of Music.