The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

Genre: Adult Epic Fantasy

Publisher: Penguin Group/DAW

Publication Date: March 27, 2007

Edition: Audio Book/eBook Pages: 662

Purchase: Book Depository
Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5 stars)

Summary

My name is Kvothe, pronounced nearly the same as "quothe." Names are important as they tell you a great deal about a person. I've had more names than anyone has a right to. The Adem call me Maedre. Which, depending on how it's spoken, can mean The Flame, The Thunder, or The Broken Tree.

"The Flame" is obvious if you've ever seen me. I have red hair, bright. If I had been born a couple of hundred years ago I would probably have been burned as a demon. I keep it short but it's unruly. When left to its own devices, it sticks up and makes me look as if I have been set afire.

"The Thunder" I attribute to a strong baritone and a great deal of stage training at an early age.

I've never thought of "The Broken Tree" as very significant. Although in retrospect, I suppose it could be considered at least partially prophetic (Patrick Rothfuss).

What I Thought

I am blown away by this book! I had heard so many interesting things and people saying they loved this book but I just couldn't commit to the time it would take to read it and be able to keep up with it (during the school year and being my first year teaching I had minimal time to read during the week). So I decided that I would preview the audio book and see if I would enjoy that, spoiler: I did! Now I did get the kindle copy and audible book combo so I could switch back and forth and I am really glad I did because with an epic fantasy there are interesting names, vocabulary, and places that the audio book were great for helping with pronunciations but being able to see them in print was wonderful as well. I mainly listened to this book on the ride to and from work (about an hour a day) and where ever else I needed to go. It took a while to get through but I LOVED it!

This story is so rich in it's world building and unbelievably well crafted. Kvothe is a fascinating character and the way the story is crafted it feels like you are listening right along with Chronicler, reading over his shoulder as he pens the story that Kvothe now tells. The book is mainly Kvothe recounting the events of his life and how he came to study at the University to become an arcanist, basically a wizard to the average layperson in the story. The magic system in this book isn't as simple as waving a wand though, it is an art of different disciplines known as Sympathy, Sygaldry, Alchemy, and Naming. This makes the magic system complex but so very interesting! The Name of the Wind is a beautiful coming of age story about a traveling troupe kid that wants to go to the University so he can learn the name of the wind and be able to control the wind like Taborlin the Great from the legends. Kvothe's story is one of happiness, heart break, survival, friendship, and competition. There is humor and shenanigans but also a lot of serious events too. I was drawn in by this story and have seriously loved every second of it! Kvothe has had an interesting life and The Name of the Wind is just the first day in his first full recounting of the actual events that he has faced and overcome in his life. Kvothe has heard the rumors about him and has even started a few of them, but now he is going to set the record straight.

It was really hard to put into words what makes this book special and wonderful. I am sure you can find more articulate reviews out there on this book on YouTube but hopefully you are able to get a better idea of the story from my thoughts above. I think this is a book everyone should give a go because it is an EPIC book. I can't even begin to fathom, or help someone else fathom, the enormity of this world but I can tell you I will read any book published about it. The glimpses of the history, culture, and politics that this book gives for the world are astounding and elaborate and I would read about the history of the world in this book alone all day long. Oh, and did I mention that there is a huge library in this book? Like Library of Alexandria huge! I appreciate that The Name of the Wind doesn't have a mile long cast of characters like most epics and I think that if you enjoy the fantasy genre that this should definitely be a contender for your TBR.

If you have any specific questions about the book that I haven't addressed please comment below and I will try to answer it!