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OLDER FICTION
Lu, Marie

The Kingdom of Back

321 pp. | Putnam | March, 2020 | Trade ISBN 978-1-5247-3901-0 $18.99 | Ebook ISBN 978-1-5247-3902-7
(2) YA Maria Anna Mozart (nicknamed Nannerl) was a musical child prodigy in her own right, though now mainly remembered only in relation to her famous younger brother, Wolfgang (Woferl) Amadeus. Lu's historical fantasy begins in 1759 Salzburg, after an event where Woferl steals eight-year-old Nannerl's spotlight; she makes a wish to be "worthy of praise, of being loved and remembered" and dreams of a magical land, the Kingdom of Back. Hyacinth, a faery princeling, later appears and offers to grant Nannerl's wish if she'll help him seek the kingdom's throne. As Nannerl begins to realize the more sinister aspects of the Kingdom, will her fear of being forgotten outweigh the danger it poses to her and, especially, her brother? Lu's exploration of the complex Mozart family dynamics and the period in which they lived is fascinating, and her knowledge of music and composition is evident; the fantastical kingdom and its inhabitants, particularly Hyacinth, feel underdeveloped in comparison. While this is a genre departure for the author (Legend, rev. 11/11; The Young Elites, rev. 1/15), Nannerl's believable development as an empowered character is classic Lu. An author's note explains that while the Mozart children actually did invent a Kingdom of Back, this version is Lu's creation.
Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2020

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