Set in the 1950s, this book explores the life of Maria von Trapp after she finds out that her life is becoming a musical. She is on the hunt the track down Oscar Hammerstein. The drama begins to unfold. As always, I wish we had learned history from novels while in school. The truth is certainly worth reading.

"The hills are alive with the sound of music." These words are some of the most iconic lyrics from the opening scene of Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical "The Sound of Music." I couldn't help but hear these words as I first glanced at the beautiful front cover of Michelle Moran's novel- Maria. In this historical fiction novel, Maria von Trapp sees the script for "The Sound of Music" and sets off to discuss its inaccuracies with Oscar Hammerstein. He's too busy to talk to her, so instead Maria is told to express her concerns to his secretary Fran instead.

My favorite parts of the book were the chapters when Maria tells the "true story" of her family's history rather than the theater version. As Maria shares her story with Fran, I could feel myself cross referencing her story with the movie/play versions that I have seen multiple times throughout my lifetime. Maria's story is quite fascinating and I thought that the author's choice to have Maria share her story with Hammerstein's secretary was a creative way for some of the real facts of the von Trapp family to be shared with the fans of "The Sound of Music." I also enjoyed learning a few facts about Oscar Hammerstein too. "My heart wants to sing" out that this novel was amazing. This novel is a must read book for all aficionados of "The Sound of Music." Don't be suprised to find yourself humming Edelweiss at least once when you read it!

An ARC was provided to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a quick read for me and I very much enjoyed the premise and execution.

The story follows Fran, a secretary/aide for Oscar Hammerstein, who is working on The Sound of Music. Maria von Trapp is not happy with the musical and wants Hammerstein to re-write it. Fran is dispatched to meet with Maria, hear her out and then tell her it can't be changed. Fran is swept up in Maria's story from her tragic childhood to her arrival at Nonnberg and then her arrival at the von Trapp family. It is a very different story from the musical and movie and it was interesting to see where they diverged and why.

The secondary story of Fran was good but her romantic entanglements were a bit off - they weren't well developed and could have been left out. But overall, I really enjoyed the story!

I enjoyed this very much. I’ve watched The Sound of Music movie more times than I can count, and I know words from every beloved song. I was fascinated with Maria’s story, and loved reading what movie scenes really occurred! Maria DID make play clothes from her curtains!

I want to read Maria’s autobiography now, because I was surprised by Von Trapp family experiences that were changed for the musical and movie…or completely left out.

It was also fun to get some insight into Oscar Hammerstein’s office and employees before the musical’s premiere. What a talented lyricist and successful businessman he was. The telling of his story by his fictional secretary, Fran, was well done by Michelle Moran.

Advanced reader copy courtesy of the publishers at NetGalley for review.

One of my all time favorite movies was and still is The Sound of Music - it is a tradition to watch the movie during the Christmas season, not sure why since the movie release in March of 1965. Back in 1965 I even read The Story of the Trapp Family Singers written by the Baroness – which painted a somewhat different story then the one presented in the movie. Before the movie, The Sound of Music was a musical; music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein, it opened in 1959 on Broadway starring Mary Martin and Theodore Bikel.

Maria by Michelle Moran is the story, historical fiction by nature, is Maria’s life story as told to Fran Connelly when one annoyed Maria von Trapp contacts Mr. Hammerstein about the inaccurate script about her life and that of her family. Through a serious of meeting Fran meets with Maria to listen and make notes on her suggestions. There is next to anything that Maria likes about this script especially when it comes to her husband Captain Georg von Trapp.

Michelle Moran alternates between two voices, that of Fran in 1959 in conversation with Maria and Maria telling her life story from 1913 through 1938. From that of a little girl in Kagran, Austria, to a young twenty-one year old postulant in the Nonnberg Abbey, to being sent to the von Trapp house for a ten month teaching assignment to finally becoming Baroness von Trapp with seven children and finally their escape in 1938 on the last train out of Austria to Italy. Maria also tells her story of her time in America, travelling the country as a singing family choir to finally buying a family farm in Vermont.

Maria was truly an interesting look at a family that was portrayed differently on stage and screen. About a lyricist, Hammerstein, that was dying of cancer and after reading Maria’s story decided ..

“But perhaps I have one more song to write. Something for all … All the difficult goodbyes.”

And that song is … Edelweiss.

Thank you, Michelle Moran, Dell and NetGalley for providing me with a digital ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. This novel was released on July 30, 2024.


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I've seen The Sound of Music countless times, so I couldn't help but picture Julie Andrews as I read this novel. Of course, I know that is the opposite of what the book wanted me to think, but I couldn't help it. This book is supposed to be about the differences between Maria's real story and the Rodgers and Hammerstein version. In fact, the story comes about as Maria is trying to get an assistant to the production team to rewrite the fictionalized version as she tells the assistant the "real" version. While still a fictional account of Maria's life, it still was different from the musical version we've all come to know. If you loved the movie, I recommend this book even if it's just to get more historical background than we ever saw with the glossed over Hollywood version.

Well, don't I feel like a dork. I had no idea that The Sound of Music was based on real people. Not sure how I missed that fact.

I found this to be interesting book. The Von Trapp family without a doubt did not have an easy life. Maria's early life was one that no child should endure. The fact that they were on the last train out of Austria before Germany closed the borders is profound.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Michelle Moran’s gripping new novel Maria (whose subject, Maria von Trapp, will be recognizable from the beautiful cover) left me pondering the reasons why people choose to tell the stories they do. In 1959, as Oscar Hammerstein is finalizing the lyrics for a Broadway musical about her life, Maria writes him a letter requesting a meeting. She doesn’t like the way her family is being depicted in the play, especially how her late husband, Georg, is shown as a strict disciplinarian.

Hammerstein sends his assistant, Fran Connelly (a fictional character), to meet with Maria and hopefully assuage her concerns, plus prevent any potential bad press. Maria’s tale then unfolds in the first person, beginning when she, as a postulant at Nonnberg Abbey, was sent to tutor one of the daughters of Baron Georg von Trapp, a war hero and widower. Maria re-introduces his seven children to music and the simple joys of playtime. This aspect doesn’t diverge far from the play and film, but later parts of Maria’s life are a different story.

The Christmas holidays in the von Trapp household are recreated in such idyllic scenes that even the nonreligious will be tempted to book a trip to Salzburg next winter! But the real Maria was a complicated woman, shown here with considerable complexity, who endured physical abuse by a relative as a child. While her ambitions for the family’s singing careers may have saved them, her domineering behavior caused mental anguish for her own children.

Readers will grasp the amusing irony that this is a novel about a woman who resisted being fictionalized. Yet Maria succeeds in presenting a well-rounded, nuanced portrait that draws its information from multiple sources, since no one account (not even Maria’s autobiographies) presents a complete image of her character. It’s a must-read for anyone who loves biographical fiction, and it provides understanding about why The Sound of Music took the fictional liberties that it did.

Maria is the historical fiction version of the story of Maria Von Trapp of Sound of Music fame. This is the story of Maria's unhappiness with the inaccuracies of how Rodgers and Hammerstein told her family story. Maria Von Trapp has written memoirs and this book is consistent with those memoirs so it is well-researched. The use of the third person to tell the story didn't draw me in as much as I wanted but all in all it is a well-written book. It's 3.5 stars for me rounding up to 4 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of Maria in exchange for an honest review. This book is available now.

The Sound of Music has been one of my favorite musicals since I was a little girl, and the von Trapp family has never been more beautifully portrayed as they are in Michelle Moran's extraordinary new novel, Maria. When Maria leaves the nunnery on a temporary mission to teach the seven children of Georg, a widow who travels extensively, she never expects to fall in love with each and every von Trapp child. They are enamored by her incredible talent, her creativity, and her fun-loving spirit. Before long, Georg is head over heels and Maria is faced with the difficult decision of remaining with the von Trapps or continuing her path toward becoming a nun. For all Sound of Music fans, we know what choice she made... but if you're like me, you probably had no idea the obstacles that she faced both before and after becoming a wife, a mother, and a successful musician.

We also meet Fran, who works for Oscar Hammerstein and is tasked with getting Maria's side of the story before the musical premieres. Maria expresses her disappointment in the way that her husband is portrayed and she also wants several details to be changed before opening night. Fran is determined to help bring the most accurate depiction of the von Trapps' unbelievable journey to the stage.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of Maria, one of Michelle Moran's most captivating works of historical fiction to date.

4.5 stars

It was not that long ago that I found out the family from The Sound of Music existed in real life. So you could only imagine my excitement to get to learn more about the real Maria von Trapp, albeit in a historical fiction setting.

Maria by Michelle Moran tells the story of the woman who inspired one of the most successful Broadway plays and films of all time. But if you think you know her and her family, think again. (That’s basically the premise of the book.) The story expands from Maria’s lonely childhood to after the escape from Austria and the family resettling in the US.

The only drawbacks I found are 1) I don’t really understand the plotline as to why Maria is telling her story. The reason the book gives doesn’t seem to be convincing enough, especially with how Maria reacts to the musical in the end. And 2) the ending to the book feels anticlimactic. I really thought there would be more of an epilogue between the last chapter and the author’s note.

Regardless, whether you’re a huge fan or you’ve at least heard of The Sound of Music, this book is for you. There is a reason why filmmakers and producers fell in love with this story. Like the person, Maria the novel is a dynamic force that will sweep you off your feet.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for sharing this digital ARC with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Maria by Michelle Moran is available now wherever books are sold.

This is really such a sweet, confection of historical fiction written in service of a beloved film, SOUND OF MUSIC, that there is little to detract from it. MARIA: A NOVEL OF MARIA VON TRAPP is the backstory to the movie/play but really it differs only slightly from the movie, one I saw at least 6 times as a child and probably another 4 with other children as an adult. It is a fast book and I read it in one sitting. I enjoyed it and had no difficulty keeping up with a tale I have not thought about in decades. For lovers of SOUND OF MUSIC, this is a fan’s delight. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

It's always interesting to see history from a different perspective. This book is perfect for those of us who grew up watching The Sound of Music and now love reading Historical Fiction.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an arc. All opinions expressed are my own.

I am a huge fan of The Sound of Music, with it being my all-time favorite musical. I also thoroughly enjoyed “The Story of the Trapp Family Singers”. With that as background, I thought I’d really love this book … but it just fell flat for me. I didn’t care for the writing style and I didn’t gain much additional insight into Maria herself.

What parts of The Sound of Music are fact, and which are fiction? That is what this historical fiction novel tackles. When the real Maria von Trapp comes to New York to confront composer Hammerstein about the liberties taken with his script, she is befriended by his secretary. Together they set out to help tell an already stranger than fiction life for entertainment.

As a lifelong Sound of Music fan, I found this book super interesting and easily readable. I was thrilled to find out what was real and what was enhanced for the story alone and Maria's struggles to tell her version and what she and her family did after they left Austria. Highly recommend this!

Thank you to Netgalley for the advance copy for review.

I've loved The Sound of Music since I was little. I was slightly obsessed with it at one point. I remember reading a book about the real story when I was ten and being so disappointed.

That didn't happen with this book. I liked the way the real story was woven in with the making of the musical. The Maria in this book is similar to the fictional one, but there's a harsher, more realistic side to her too. It was fun to read, as was the rest of this book.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.

Maria byMichelle Moran is about Maria von Trapp of Sound of Music fame..The musicals about the family actually began in Germany in 1956.The Sound of Music was the first movie I ever went to and I appreciated new insights into the story!Maria was unhappy about the way some things were portrayed in the musical but had to admit it was partly true.After the family left the stage after their final performance and went to America things did not go so well and part of it was caused by Maria.The authors note at the end of the book must not be missed because it tells what happened to each family member.If you loved Sound of Music you will enjoy this book!Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Ballantine for allowing me to read this ARC..

"Maria" was a fascinating book. It is certainly no surprise that the Sound of Music takes liberties with the lives of Maria and the von Trapp family. However, it is interesting to learn how much was left out (obviously necessary in any play or movie) and how much was changed. For example, Liesl, probably one of the best-known characters in the movie, did not exist; the oldest von Trapp child was a boy named Rupert. It was also interesting to learn what the various children thought of singing in public as a family. The story provides a much more rounded picture of Maria, and how the events of her childhood and fears of abandonment impacted her decisions as an adult, including multiple decisions that she would come to regret because of the estrangement it caused with some of her stepchildren and children. I was amused to learn that the transforming curtains into play clothes was true. I was also amused by Georg's proposal to Maria.

**Thank you to Random House for this free digital review copy.**

I had a difficult time getting into this book, which surprised me because it's more-or-less a book version of "The Sound of Music," which isn't my favorite musical but I do enjoy it. It set it aside in favor of other things a few times, but did eventually come back and finish the story.

Fran is a hopeful writer working with the legendary Rodgers and Hammerstein, and she is tasked with meeting with Maria von Trapp, who has some complaints about the script of their new play. Fran meets several times with Maria to hear her story and give her notes to Mr. Hammerstein, who is in the midst of a personal health crisis and writing his last song for the musical.

The reader is transported back by Maria's storytelling and gets to see some of the differences between her real life and the fictionalized version that has been produced for public consumption. I have to say, having this fictionalized version of a real person arguing about the fictionalization of her life is... a little confusing. But in the end, it's about the story and this story was told with emotion and empathy, and I think any "Sound of Music" fan will enjoy this book!

When a musical play is written about Maria von Trapp, she disagrees with the storyline and goes to set the record straight.