Part One: Chapter IV, An Austrian Christmas Summary and Analysis

As Christmas approaches, Maria not only teaches the children more carols, but they are also now crafting gifts for their father, the Baroness, their grandmother in Vienna, and for each other as they sing. Maria credits her vast repertoire to having been a part of the Austrian Catholic Youth Movement in her youth. They traveled the Alps from town to town learning songs handed down over many generations, the author explains.

While the Baroness visits friends, they sit on the floor. In the middle of rehearsing new songs one day, their father arrives from a trip. Maria apologizes, but the Captain is not bothered because they are sitting on the floor. He comments on how wonderful they sound. Sitting on the floor himself, he asks that they sing the...