Book review: In Mozart's Shadow by Carolyn Meyer

In Mozart's Shadow by Carolyn Meyer (Published by Harcourt Books, June 1, 2008)

Young Nannerl Mozart, like her younger brother Wolfgang Mozart, has been a talented musician since the time she was a small child. And it is from a young age that she is forced by an unloving and overbearing father to continuously give up her hopes and dreams for the sake of her brother. As a little girl she was allowed to perform by her father, who wanted to show off his children as child prodigies, but even then, she knew he preferred her brother.

When she is too old to be a child prodigy any longer, Nannerl must suffer and sacrifice even more due to the demands of her father, who is determined to put all his efforts into promoting his son’s career. Because she is a girl, she cannot become a famous musician, despite her great talent, and because of her father, she is prevented from studying, pursuing a position at court, or marrying the man of her choosing. Though she loves her brother, she becomes increasingly distant from him due to his career and her own unhappiness at the loss of all her dreams.

In Mozart’s Shadow is another excellent historical novel from the talented Carolyn Meyer. Once again she takes a young woman from the pages of history and brings her to life with all her feelings, hopes, and dreams. Nannerl Mozart was a talented young woman forced to sacrifice so much for her family, and hopefully this and other books about her will give her some of the fame she rightfully deserved in her own lifetime but was prevented from achieving because of her gender and the demands of her family.