About book Agathe Von Trapp: Memories Before And After The Sound Of Music (2004)
How I Came To Read This Book: My parents got it for me in the states - I believe there was some article in the paper because she had just passed away, so they read it and knowing I'm a huge fan of The Sound Of Music, got it for me. The Plot: This is the autobiography of the eldest Von Trapp daughter - although not the eldest child, a departure from the play / film - Agathe, who would in theory be 'Liesl' in the fictionalized version of the Von Trapp family's lives. It details Agathe's family history, her childhood, experiences during the two world wars, singing career, and reaction to the adaptation of her life.The Good & The Bad: Let me say, the title of this book is quite misleading. In fact, it's hypocritical. The 'After' memories of The Sound of Music take up a paltry two or three chapters. In fact the title of one chapter is 'Oh, The Sound Of Music' where she basically rips apart the film / play and how inaccurate it was at depicting their life. There's definitely resentment in two particular areas - there her father was posited as cold and distant and that Maria was the person that brought music and joy into their lives. If anything I felt Agathe was quite ambivalent to Maria in the book. She does resolve that over time she came to understand the strong emotional connection people have with the fiction version of her life, and she wouldn't want to take that away from anyone - she just finds it hard to feel as 'good' about it as others do. Part of it is obviously sour grapes - she notes that her mom sold their 'story rights' for a paltry $10,000 when the family was most in need of it and thus they never profited from the huge royalties that go with the movie and play today. But what BUGS me is that she wrote this book, tied it to the fictional story, and then completely dismissed it and was quite negative toward it throughout the whole book. It'd be one thing if the title was about "A Life Apart From The Sound Of Music" but instead, no, they've deliberately packaged it as if the film / play had a huge impact on her life and it didn't - in fact, she reviled and avoided the association. Okay, rage done. The other beef I had here was that aside from biting the hand she was being fed from, this book is stylistically just not all that interesting. In failing to recognize the reader's expectation that the book should build to, parallel, and build ON the little we know of the Von Trapp's, it instead is written in very simple prose, in a very rambling sort of way - very much an old woman's memoirs about what it is she *can* grasp, not what it is that would matter to the reader. There were still some interesting bits, particularly in the description of being in Austria in WW2 but there was no real style or commitment to telling a meaningful story - and again, in not acknowledging that the only reason why people have picked up this book is one you aren't proud of. SO I found myself skimming a lot. The whole thing just felt like a lot of surface whitewashing - there wasn't much of a connection to Agathe, let alone her siblings. I *wanted* to like this book, and the insight between the discrepancies was interesting, but the combination of the simplistic style and false packaging just made this a ho hum reading experience. I should also point out that there was a lot of religious talk in here I didn't expect - it's not out of place coming from someone that grew up in that time period or is writing a book at her age, but it was still jarring to read paragraphs about "God was obviously looking out for us" and "God knew best" over and over again. The Bottom Line: More flat than sharp. Anything Memorable?: I did enjoy her passing mention that she worked with Charmian Carr (Liesl) because I read her book a year or two ago where she talked about what it was like to meet Agathe. It would have been horribly sad if she didn't acknowledge that at least. 60-Book Challenge?: Book #6 in 2012.
The "truthiness" of The Sound of Music never really occurred to me in any direct way; even when I was told it was "based on a true story", I took that with a large grain of salt. So when I came across Memories Before and After the Sound of Music in my library's collection, I was intrigued! I wanted to make myself more familiar with the truth behind the story. It was a movie I enjoyed, and I'm always interested in seeing how storytellers straddle the line between art and fact. What had been stretched, twisted, omitted? How did the writers repack the story of the family von Trapp into a consumable movie/play? There are things I'm glad I know--the fact that Maria von Trapp was paid a pitanance for the rights to the family's story, for example--but there were many more captured in this book that really did nothing for me. Or worse than nothing: they exposed the von Trapp's casual privilege and off-putting (to me) inability to exist outside of their own family. I can try to understand the frustration of a) being forever linked to a multi-million dollar movie that did not truly benefit your family in any way, and b) dealing with the "artistic license" that twisted your reality into a national byline, but ultimately I was unmoved. I'll keep The Sound of Music in all its fictional ridiculous glory.
Do You like book Agathe Von Trapp: Memories Before And After The Sound Of Music (2004)?
Growing up, I loved watching The Sound of Music. I haven't seen it in years but would like to watch it again soon. The cover of the book caught my eye at the library and I snatched it up.This book tries to cover many years in only a few pages. As a result, the book never feels like it breaks the surface of the von Trapp family. The book is extremely clean, very upbeat, and makes it sound as if the family never struggles with any of their circumstances. Maybe that's true; maybe they did go through some very difficult struggles with optimism and unwavering faith. I hope that's the case but it didn't seem realistic. An example of how the book covers everything in a very superficial manner - "we were granted the opportunity to sing for the pope during a general audience. It was held in a special room in the Vatican under the watchful eye of the Swiss Guard. The female members of our group wore long-sleeved black dirndls and black lace veils, and we performed Mozart's "Ave Verum" for the pope" (187). That's it! How did they obtain an audience with the pope? Did they audition for it? Were they invited? How did they feel while they sang for him? What was the special room like? Did it change their outlook on the Catholic church?Details! I want details! :)
—Cassandra
The author recently died increasing the continual interest in her family from anyone who can belt out any of the songs from "The Sound Of Music" by heart. Agathe von Trapp is the eldest daughter and second child. She spends most of the book telling us about her real mother, not stepmother Maria who pushed the family. Agathe wants to set the record straight about her father as opposed to how he is depicted in the movie.The book is illustrated with charming sketches done by the author. The book falls short though of being charming because there is a definite chip on the shoulder of Agathe when it comes to how her family is perceived. It's also clear that she respected her stepmother but I never felt any real affection there. The chapter that updates you on what happened to her siblings contains some surprises including one that is heartbreaking.
—Linda
Being a 'Sound of Music' buff, I was fascinated to read of the life of the Von Trapps prior to what we know. Agathe wrote this as an older woman, in part to rectify the image of her father as portrayed in the stage show and film. I needed to remember this book was written by a woman not of my generation or cultural background because I found some of the passive acceptance of events a bit hard to swallow. There was also a tendency to sugar coat things which only adds to the saccharine perception from the movie. This is not a memoir that dishes the dirt,lol! But saying all that, I would recommend this to anyone who loves the movie and wants to explore a bit more about the lives of the real Von Trapps
—Kathy
