George Frideric Handel always knew what he liked. And he was never afraid to do what he liked — whether smuggling a clavichord into the attic, sneaking off at a duke’s castle to play the organ, ordering forty-five pounds of snow to chill his wine, or writing operas that no one wanted to hear. Even in his darkest hour, when it seemed everyone and everything were against him, Handel stayed true to himself. And because he did, he has become one of the best-loved composers in the world. In this absorbing biography, M. T. Anderson’s narrative and Kevin Hawkes’s stunning art illuminate the life and legacy of a musical visionary.