The Kingdom of Back is one of those fantasies that is as magical as you want it to be. The titular kingdom that springs from the minds of the Mozart siblings takes on a life of its own, though there is just enough of a mystery around it for the reader to ask whether it ever truly leaves their imaginations. It leads our protagonist, Nannerl, to become a bit of an unreliable narrator, one that is swept away with the beautiful, yet suspicious magic of the place. I think it gave the story a neat allegorical aspect, to sort of decipher which each aspect of the kingdom represents and if the figures in Nannerl's regular life have any influence in it. There's probably enough evidence to sway readers to either direction if the place is real or not, which naturally lends itself to a great deal of interpretation.

While it is easy to call Nannerl a bit gullible given how easy it is to spot the danger she's in and how insidious the figure tempting her truly is, it's also so easy to empathize with her. There's that inner conflict of wanting to keep loving her little brother and protect him, but also some deep envy from how he's going to be the more notable prodigy given that he's a boy. Nannerl wants a chance to live on beyond her lifetime through her music, a chance that's easily denied to her because of the age she lives in. Her internal journey leads to emotional, inspiring places that definitely made me want to learn more about her by the book's end.

What I also appreciated is the attachment of the Mozart siblings. They go through their conflicts and have periods of resenting or not talking to each other, but, at the end of the day, they want what's best for each other and will take on any sacrifice to make it so. Wolferl never comes off as petulant or egocentric when it comes to his music. He naturally recognizes his talents, but he also highlights and acknowledges his sister's gifts. I may not know much about Mozart in real life, but I do know that a lot of his operas have strong, capable and smart female leads, some stories even being very feminist for their time. It's nice to see that aspect of "drinking the respect women juice" in this story.

While I did ultimately like the book, the slow pacing did make it hard to get through. A lot of the time the book just shows the siblings going from place to place, performing to audiences or Nannerl just reflecting to herself. The writing style doesn't really help the pace, as it's not so much lyrical as it is matter of fact. There's also a romantic element that seems like it was starting to go somewhere, only for it to be completely dropped by Act 3. After finishing the book, I just simply looked up who she ended up marrying, so there's a bit of resolution in that, but I think it's something that should have at least been wrapped up in the final chapter. 

I think The Kingdom of Back is perfect for the music lovers out there, especially those that are drawn to Mozart's music. I can't vouch for how accurate it is, but it'll definitely give you a new appreciation for the family as well as put the spotlight on a girl that deserved to be in it for far longer than she was.