At times, it seems as if the magical place actually unfolds around them, replacing their neighborhood with the forest, and they even catch fleeting glimpses in the streets of Salzburg of the wild boy, a faery princeling named Hyacinth. Her old wish comes back to her: 'Make them remember me.'And she hears the 'sweet and beautiful' voice of the wild boy: 'I can help you, Nannerl, if you help me.'Īs Nannerl carries on with the fairy story, the siblings slowly fill in details of the fantastical kingdom. Woferl plays the tune and does it so well that wonder and 'a small twinge of something' (Envy? Fear?) begins to take root within Nannerl.

As Nannerl describes the landscape-a forest with trees that 'stand upsidedown' and a shore with 'sand as white as snow'-she transcribes a strange song that seems to spring note by note from this other world. After trying a few chords, her brother asks her to tell him a story, and the Kingdom of Back resurfaces.

Wolferl begs to learn the clavier, too, and Nannerl quickly understands that he has a 'remarkable ear,' perhaps even better than her own. For now, though, Nannerl happily retreats to the haven of her clavier practice, and the menuetts she loves to play. She is haunted, knowing that soon, when she leaves her childhood behind, her father will stop teaching her. Time passes, and Nannerl overhears her parents speaking of a future for her defined by marriage and childbearing. That night, annoyed by her brother's interruption and desperate for the approval of her demanding father, Nannerl falls asleep yearning to be 'worthy of praise, of being loved and remembered.' For the first time, she dreams of the Kingdom of Back: a wild-looking boy walks in the surf of an ocean 'lit by twin moons,' and the air ripples with a 'melody so perfect' Nannerl 'aches to grasp it.' If she impresses, she will surely be invited to play for Herr Haydn of Austria, then on to the royal courts of Europe, thereby raising up the prospects of a family 'forever on the edge of respectable.' But when Wolferl innocently distracts the good Herr, Nannerl's opportunity is lost. Their papa says Nannerl is a 'miracle,' and he brings Herr Schachtner, 'the esteemed court trumpeter of Salzburg,' home to hear her play the clavier.

The story begins in 1759, when Maria Anna, called Nannerl by the family, is eight years old and Wolfgang only three. In The Kingdom of Back, Marie Lu entwines well-researched fiction with fantasy, conjuring a captivating tale of young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and 'the other Mozart.' Historical details come alive in this fantasy-infused account of the extremely close relationship between the musical genius and his lesser-known sister, Maria Anna.

The kingdom of back marie lu