The Kingdom of Back by Marie Lu: a Historical Fantasy

 


The Kingdom of Back is a historical fantasy about the Mozart family, focusing on Maria Anna Mozart rather than her famous brother Wolfgang. Maria Anna or Nannerl is a talented young musician with the fear of being forgotten. From a young age, Nannerl is taught to play the clavier by her father and spends hours practicing each day. Nannerl is really passionate about music and works hard to earn her father’s approval. Nannerl has a strong fear of being forgotten so she uses a small glass pendant and wishes to always be remembered. This wish is what leads her to meet Hyacinth.

Growing up, Nannerl and her brother Woferl are really close. When their father is away, Nannerl and her brother share stories. Together, they create a magical world called the Kingdom of Back based on a dream Nannerl once had. In this dream, Nannerl sees an enchanted world with two moons, upside down trees, and a magical boy who seemed to be a prince. 

One day, while Nannerl and Woferl are playing the clavier, the world around them transforms into the Kingdom of Back. At the kingdom, Nannerl and Woferl meet Prince Hyacinth and Nannerl quickly realizes that the first time she saw the kingdom wasn’t a dream. Hyacinth promises to make Nannerl unforgettable if she helps him in the kingdom. Around this time, Woferl starts to learn to play the clavier at a remarkably young age. As Woferl continues to compose and perform at a young age, he begins to earns more attention while Nannerl’s music is increasingly overlooked. Nannerl decides to help Hyacinth in order for her to be unforgettable.


One thing I didn’t like about this book was how some parts felt slow. Especially in the beginning, the story was slow moving with little plot development. However, the book soon started going at a pace that was much more engaging and had lots of action. I really liked how the descriptions of the Kingdom of Back were very detailed. This made it very easy to imagine the fantasy parts of the story. I also liked how this book was a mix of historical fiction and fantasy. This was the first book I read that had a mix of both fantasy and history. It was really interesting to read about real historical events while also seeing how the author mixed fantasy into the story. Overall, The Kingdom of Back was a really good book and I would recommend it to anyone that enjoys reading historical fiction or fantasy.


- Niveditha

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