Brilliant, soulful, poor, and doomed to a short life, Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828) in many ways embodied the Romantic era in which he lived. In this vibrant biographical novel, Peter Härtling brings the composer to life as a man of exquisite sensitivity, passionate extremes, and a profound sense of rootlessness much like the famous wanderers of his musical creations. The deftly interwoven description and dialogue recreate Schubert's family, education, friendships, loves, and the exciting milieu of Vienna during the Napoleonic era, where Schubert was introduced to the many works of his contemporaries, including Beethoven, Rossini, Salieri, Schiller, and Goethe.