Memories Before and After the Sound of Music: An Autobiography
4.4 | 1,613 ratings
Price: 10.82
Last update: 01-30-2026
Product details
- ASIN : B003V1WSSC
- Publisher : William Morrow Paperbacks
- Accessibility :
- Publication date : September 14, 2010
- Edition : Illustrated
- Language : English
- File size : 6.0 MB
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 258 pages
- ISBN-13 : 978-0062010551
- Page Flip : Enabled
- Best Sellers Rank:#1,112 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
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- Customer Reviews:4.44.4 out of 5 stars(1,613)
Top reviews from the United States
- aslan50macLoved the Real Story of the Trapp FamilyI loved reading the real details of the Trapp family lives. Agathe did a great job giving the true feelings of what it was like to grow up with her biological mom and dad who were both very loving parents. The descriptions of the scenery and family events made me feel like I was in the room, or would have wanted to be there too! Maria was a problem at the convent and her personality caused some issues for Agathe but overall she was good for the family as their new "Mother." I enjoyed reading about their tours of the US, my mom had told me about this family as a young girl and I think she probably attended one of their Boston concerts. It's a great read - makes you appreciate the movie for what it is, a wonderful story but not so true to their everyday lives.
- Cynthia K. RobertsonNot quite The Sound of Music, but still interesting...After reading a book about movie musicals, I decided to read something more about the story behind one of the biggest musicals ever—The Sound of Music. Agathe Von Trapp was the second child and oldest daughter of Captain Georg Von Trapp, and Memories Before and After The Sound of Music is her autobiography. It is mostly delightful and includes sketches drawn by the author. However, fans of the movie may be disappointed that the life of the Von Trapp family is often quite different from the movie-version.
Memories Before and After The Sound of Music spends much time describing Agathe’s childhood. Her father was a handsome submarine commander in the Austrian Navy. Their mother, also named Agathe, came from Austrian aristocrats on one side, and a wealthy British inventor and industrialist on the other. They married and had seven children before Agathe died from scarlet fever. Their childhood is disrupted by World War I, and then again with the rise of the Nazi party and World War II. The author makes a special effort to tell the reader all the fiction in the movie based on their lives. She claims that their father wasn’t stern but loving and kind. He was always interested in music and never had them stop performing after the death of his wife. Step-mother Maria was also not the wonderful woman portrayed by Julie Andrews, and she was only hired to tutor one sister who was sick at home. Although it seems like there was genuine affection between Maria and her step-children, Agathe claims that Maria could also be quite difficult. But at some point, Agathe comes to accept The Sound of Music and the role it will play in the lives of all the Von Trapps.
I will admit that I thought this book got bogged down in spots. There seems to be a lot of name dropping with castles and estates in which the family stayed. But several themes shine through, and they are family, faith and music. Even after the family stopped touring in 1956, they remained close and the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, Vermont is still the center of family activity.
Even though Agathe’s story doesn’t always parallel The Sound of Music, it is still a fascinating one. And where The Sound of Music ends with their escape from Austria, Agathe fills in the time after that as they settle into American life. - Barbara C.The true storyI enjoyed finding out the true story behind the Von Trapp family. I had already learned on my visit to Salzburg that much of what was in the Sound of Music was not an accurate representation but poetic license. I can understand why the Von Trapp children might have been unhappy with it, but this author explains how she came to terms with it. It's still a great story.
- H. L.Fabulous book! Glad I read it!Fabulous book! Well written and kept my interest. If you want to know more about the Trapp family this is a must read.
- Holly AWNot much about the Sound of Music....The book title is misleading as there is very little about The Sound of Music in it. Indeed, there is very little about the Von Trapps after the Captain marries Maria. I knew that the stage play and the movie were highly fictionalized and I bought this book hoping to learn more about the real family adventure with Maria. However, And the makes clear early on that she didn't like the play or the movie and so does her best to make most of the book about the family before her mother's death and Georg's second marriage to Maria. There is mind numbing detail about events from her early childhood that have to be based on others ' memories. It felt like she didn't care much for her stepmother as there is very little about her and next to nothing about what led to her marriage to Georg other than he needed someone to take care of his seven children. Now don't get me wrong, there are things to learn in the book, but it should not have Sound of Music in the title. It was worth reading but could have been so much better IMHO. Hence 3 stars.
- FrankVery good look at the true story of the Trapp FamilyQuite readable. I disagree with Sound of Music fans who dissed this memoir. Nice to hear that Captain von Trapp was a very caring and loving father, before Maria came into the family. And they knew a lot more than do-re-mi before Maria!!! They had very good music teachers, and make a musical quartet, with the Captain playing - all before Maria. The Captain liked Maria - young & pretty. She didn't have competition from a beautiful & sophisticated Viennese countess - and not really from an older Countess who was a live-in teacher, less charismatic than Maria. Interesting to see how the story was tweaked for stage and film. Oh yes, and the family didn't hike over the Untersberg - which would have landed them in Nazi Germany!!! They went to the train station, just across their property line! I enjoyed reading about Agathe von Trapp's personal experiences. I've seen 2 German films about the story. I've read one of Maria's books, and enjoy the fictionalized film, too.
- AudsFascinating look into the Trapp Family SingersAgatha von Trapp, the oldest of the Trapp family singers tells their real story. While it differs from the movie, The Sound of Music, and she readily tells the differences, her style is delightful as is her story. I have always been a huge fan of the movie and I thoroughly enjoyed learning about Agatha. She tells so much about their early life that is fascinating. It's also part history lesson explaining the geographic divisions that occurred in Austria. Their touring life and settlement in the United States was interesting. She ends with great information about the play and movie, The Sound of Music.