The Name of the Wind ~Patrick Rothfuss
–published 2007
–Daw Books
–722 pages (mmpb)
–2007 Quill Award, Publisher’s Weekly ‘Best Books of the Year’ 2007, 2008 Alex Award
–10/10 (I am in awe)
“It is a word. Words are pale shadows of forgotten names. As names have power, words have power. Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts. There are seven words that will make a person love you. There are ten words that will break a strong man’s will. But a word is nothing but a painting of a fire. A name is the fire itself”.
I do not know what the typing equivalent is to a whisper, but I feel as if I must do so. Type gently, quietly, or it might break the spell that I am under. For a spell it is. I stand transfixed. Undone. And once again transformed by the power of the gift of good storytelling. A scant thirty minutes have passed since I turned the final page of Patrick Rothfuss’ debut novel, The Name of the Wind, and I literally feel that tiny quivering, that emanating glow, that comes when I find myself wholly immersed in story. Patrick Rothfuss has lit a fire in this man’s mind and it has suffused me with a warmth known only to other passionate readers.
Wow.
“My name is Kvothe…you may have heard of me”.
An enigmatic innkeeper with red hair and an air of quiet mystery is coaxed into telling his story over the course of three days to his close companion and to the man who will chronicle his tale. The Name of the Wind constitutes day one. What follows is a tale so engaging that you can almost smell the ale going flat as you sit enraptured at the feet of a master storyteller. For that is exactly what Kvothe turns out to be, no doubt helped along by his very talented creator. From his early days as a traveling performer to his first taste of magic to his days at the University, we the readers are allowed behind the scenes to witness the story as it is being written, the tale as told from the one who experienced it first hand. It is a wildly entertaining story with its fair share of crests and valleys, that at times reminded me of Charles Dickens (particularly in the years that Kvothe spends in the city of Tarbean) and at others reminded me of my favorite gaming experiences of all time, the Thief games created many years ago by Looking Glass Studios. While the later comparison may not register with any of you reading this, my immersion in, enjoyment of, and fond recollection of those gaming experiences translates into a high compliment when I compare it with my experience with this novel.
The danger in recommending a book like this…heck, the danger in writing a book like this…is that it may be mistaken for yet another in a long line of door-stop sized “fantasy” books and dismissed out of hand. While some would seek to denigrate it as material that has been done before, an argument I find riddled with fallacy considering the fact that the same could be said for any book, others might seek to classify this as something unique, as if that is the only thing that could possibly give a novel in the fantasy genre any legitimacy. It is my contention that The Name of the Wind contains a good deal of both and is all the better for it. There is a familiarity in the setting, the characters, the narrative adventures that allow you as a reader to settle very comfortably into the flow of the story. And then Rothfuss infuses the narrative with his own personal style in a way that feels fresh, giving an almost contemporary feel to a story set in an age that is clearly all but forgotten. I am very impressed with the skill evident in each and every page of this novel.
For a great many of you, all of this is old news. You have already traveled this road and come back from your journey aching for more. You are sitting there, smiling, realizing that yes, Carl has been bitten by the Patrick Rothfuss bug, same as you. Others may be considering giving Rothfuss a try, particularly as the second book of this planned trilogy has just been released. Do not let the hype dissuade you. Do not let the book’s size dissuade you. Do not let the idea that fantasy just isn’t your thing dissuade you. If you have ever had the pleasure of sitting in front of a good storyteller, the kind of person where you hang on their every word, allow me to opine that Patrick Rothfuss is that kind of storyteller. I have long been fond of the inn as a setting for a story. Whether it be Larry Niven’s Draco Tavern series, Neil Gaiman’s World’s End, the gathering place in the House of Mystery comics, or now Rothfuss’ Waystone Inn, the idea of a place within a story where others gather to tell stories is a device that almost immediate causes me to settle in to the story being told. Patrick Rothfuss does a wonderful job with weaving this setting into the novel by occasionally bringing you back to the “present”, allowing the reader to stay connected to Kvothe as storyteller as well as the other two characters present in the inn. It also gives Rothfuss a chance to foreshadow events in a way that builds the reader’s suspense and whets the appetite without giving anything away.
Finally (you don’t really believe that do you?) Patrick Rothfuss succeeds in bringing characters to life in such a way that they lift off the page. Rather than a collection of cliches or stock characters, the people that inhabit the world in The Name of the Wind experience the kind of triumphs and tragedies mixed with a healthy dose of the mundane that makes them authentic. They act, and react, the way real people do, not in an idealized fashion, and at the same time the story manages to not be a completely dark, foreboding tale.
Is The Name of the Wind worthy of a perfect score in my rating system? Is there not room for improvement? All I can safely say in this euphoric state is that I took my time reading this. Other than a 250 page binge made possible by a long stint in a hospital emergency room (false alarm, Mary thought she was having an appendicitis), I read at a much slower than usual pace, savoring the story in small doses and fitting it into a very busy month. Despite this I found myself thinking of the characters and the story often, longing to get back to it and enjoying those snatches of a page or two, or a chapter or two, whenever I could get it. I could do this and maintain a deep engagement in the story because Patrick Rothfuss made me care, and he told me a story filled with the ‘trappings’ of fantasy that I like best.
The Name of the Wind is truly a wonderful book and my experience with it was unquestionably good. So yes, it deserves a 10 out of 10. I would like to publicly thank Jeff S. for encouraging me to read it so that we could read and discuss The Wise Man’s Fear together. You picked a winner, my friend. Well done.
Ooo I have this picked out as a Once Upon a Time read, sounds like a good choice.
I would ask that the book was published in the Hungarian language? I’ve been to several shops in the area, but still could not find it anywhere. Online stores also have looked at (www.konyv-konyvek.hu), but could not find it there either. Planned to prepare the Hungarian-language translation? If so, then what is the timetable?
So glad that you loved it – I had a fantastic time reading it (I re-read Name of the Wind first) and am sooooo looking forward to reading all three back to back in a few years time when it’s all written. 10 out of 10 from me too!
Jo Walton has a great (SPOILER ALERT!) post over at Tor that opened my eyes to a few things I’d missed – http://www.tor.com/blogs/2011/03/sleeping-under-the-wagon-more-spoilers-for-patrick-rothfusss-the-wise-mans-fear
It sounds fabulous. I’ll definately pick it up. Great review 😀
Kelly: It really is. The awards and accolades that have been heaped upon it are richly deserved.
Peta: Lets cross our fingers and hope it is truly just a “few years” until we get to read the last book. 🙂 I’ll check out that post after I’ve read The Wise Man’s Fear (which I started last night).
boros1124: I’m sorry that it hasn’t been. I can truly understand your frustration. I wish there were programs that easily translated works to other languages, but I know that it isn’t just a simple word for word conversion. The best translations are works of art, capturing the same nuance that the author put forth in the original language. I hope it finds its way into Hungarian soon.
Katrina: Great! I look forward to reading your thoughts on it.
Hmm. Never heard of this Rothfuss character. I’ll have to check him out… 😉
Just kidding, Carl. Your thoughts echo many in the laud of Pat’s praise. TNOTW is truly one of the best books I’ve ever read, and I find myself recommending it more than any other to people. I’m glad you fell under the spell of Kvothe. Great review!
Wasn’t Elodin hilarious? That guy cracks me up to no end.
Carl, I’ll pass on to you exactly what all my friends said to me when I finally read Name of the Wind last year: I am SOOOOOOOOO happy you read it!
Rothfuss is a bit of a game changer, isn’t he?
I have this and the second book but still afraid to start them.. If I read them I won’t want to wait 3 or 4 years for the final book! whereas if I DON’T waiting is not a problem lol
I am really worried that it will be quite a while before book 3 comes out… I started book two last night anyway. 🙂 I am still early in and trying to get my mind back on who the characters are and such. I am glad that you enjoyed this so much!
Aw… you made me blush…:)
Seriously I’m glad you loved it. I know I did and I truly thought you would but I didn’t know if you would dig it as much as I did. I’m so glad my fears were unfounded.
I’m up to page 150 in TWMF. Your sure to pass me on it as I’m not nearly so focused and driven a reader as you but that’s ok. Each at their own pace.
I believe it will be 3 or 4 years until book 3 comes out and I’m fine with that. I’m sure my TBR pile will never be empty so it’s not like I don’t have anything else to read.
It’s funny because as much as people complain about the gaps and lengths of times between books from writers such as the ones we love like Gaiman and GRRM it’s really a blessing because it allows us to find other great writers in the intervals like Rothfuss, Bledsoe, Bradley and Walton. Let’s face it why waste negative energy on complaining about what books aren’t out from certain authors when we can celebrate all the cool books that are out from so many different authors like Rothfuss. 🙂
If you really enjoy Pat’s books I would encourage you to check out his blog as well. He’s very down to earth and quite funny.
Jeff: I’m just thrilled that Rothfuss has a trilogy in mind vs. a 10 book epic. I don’t want to invest 40 years of waiting time in a story at this point! Ha!
I did love it and am glad that I did as well. Look forward to chatting to you about it in person sometime. I am going to alternate reading The Wise Man’s Fear with some short stories and Swamplandia, so I won’t tear through it as fast as usual. At least that is the plan! 🙂 I’ll also be reading Bledsoe’s latest with you, hopefully starting next week, so that will derail the Rothfuss’ reading a bit too.
I’ve read his blog a few times already, a few weeks back, and it was fun. Down to earth is a good description. I hope he doesn’t lose that quality.
Kailana: Luckily this wasn’t like GRRM’s books in that there weren’t SO MANY characters to remember. I don’t mind waiting 3 or 4 years, I just hope it isn’t much longer than that.
Deslily: This was so good I would suggest diving right in, but I totally understand the conundrum. It is this waiting game that has kept me from reading many different series over the years.
Redhead: Yes he is! I’m so happy for the guy too. To have a debut novel do so well considering all the years he worked on it is really neat. I’m thrilled the second book is getting a lot of positive buzz as well.
Logankstewart: Yeah, right. This from the Rothfuss stalker! 😉 Yes, Elodin is great. I am also very very fond of Bast and of Auri. I think Auri might be my favorite secondary character.
Well my goodness!! Some thoughts:
(1) That’s (excuse my language or it’s usage here, please) one hell of a review. Well written, evocative, persuasive, leading to temptation. Frightening.
(2) Opine is a fine word I use too infrequently.
(3) You place me square in the sights of a Quandary, a creaky old one. One I’m already suffering through in various degrees with several other polymorphic fantasy fictions, not limited to those by George R.R. Martin, Michael Sullivan and Christopher Paolini. I gave up on Michael Jordan’s WHEEL OF TIME for this same reason: when will it end, when can I read it in whole, straight through? When will it be completed? When can I read it without the break between books that lets me forget the whole darn thing – or the details that matter – and capture it as a whole? Sure, you wrote the review in the glow of the storyteller’s magic, and knowing the next installment is on your bookshelf, awaiting your pleasure. But it could be two or three years before Rothfus wraps this up, and even then it might not be just one book, but 2, or 3 or…? Darn it, I want to read this, but I don’t want that wait.
(4) On the other hand, if a bus ran me over tomorrow, I’d be sorry I’d missed a terrific book. God’s teeth, man, you have thrown me into the Pit, and I don’t know the way out.
(5) Lastly, when listing books using the inn as a framing device, don’t forget Dennis McKiernan’s Tales of Mithgar and Red Slippers, nor Arthur C. Clarke’s Tales From the White Hart.
RkR: Watch that language young man!!! I don’t use ‘opine’ much myself, it just kind of shot through my fingers last night while I was typing this without asking my permission. It looked so nice sitting there I decided to let it stay.
My friend, I understand your quandry all too well. There is a reason I quit on Jordan, hadn’t started Martin, didn’t bother with Rothfuss three years ago when this came out. The books are big, detailed, and even the best of us have a hard time remembering the fine detail necessary to truly glean all the meaning out of a story when it takes years for the next book to come out. And although I read many different books more than once, I have yet to find myself desirous of re-reading a 700+ page book, no matter how much I love it. I always find myself thinking “I could read two or three smaller books in the time it is going to take me to re-read this book”. Many years ago I quit reading Jordon because at the end of each book it was clear there would be another one coming out. I couldn’t take it anymore. I do think there are fewer characters in Rothfuss’ book vs. Jordans or Martins (thus far) and so I am a little more confident, perhaps foolishly so, that I will recall what I need to recall from the first two books once book three comes out.
I am also willing to trust Rothfuss at this point that book three will end this, mostly because he has set this up for each book to be one whole day of storytelling and he started off by saying the story will be told in three days. There could always be a fourth book to wrap up what happens after the story is told, but the way this first one was written I don’t see that being the case. It certainly wouldn’t flow well, in my opinion, if this didn’t end up being a trilogy. Then again, only time will tell.
I know, as well as you, that we would have a lot of reading regrets (as well as others) if a bus ran us over tomorrow anyway.
Thanks for the list of other books using an inn. I’ll add them to the list.
One more thought. It would seem that, since we know the narrator is alive and well years later to tell this story, that we’d not take seriously any deadly threat to him. He might be injured, yes, but we know he’ll pull through. OI can hear you reply that we’d know that anyway, as he is The Hero and authors don’t kill heroes part way through, and that’s true enough, but we’re never absolutely sure of that, are we? Unless we know he is alive and telling us the tale after the fact.
If we are told by the man had a terrible journey or experience, we can look at him and think “well, you’re here, all limbs attached, drinking that ale and chewing those Beer Nuts, so it can’t have turned out too badly.” Thus, suspense suspended, yes?
Possible spoilers ahead, though not really anything other than vague ideas. Still, better to forewarn you.
RkR: But we don’t know that. He is actually telling the story starting at the beginning up to the very moment he is in (I assume), interspersed with some very odd and sinister things that are happening in the town where his little inn is located. Those moments in the “present time” of the story are not told by Kvothe, and follow other characters in the story, not just Kvothe. There is plenty of foreshadowing here that things might just not turn out so well. All we can assume at this point is that he will be alive and safe for the next two days, after this one, to continue his story. Everything else is up for grabs.
All we really know is that he is physically alive “right now”, so yes, no dangers he was in previously killed him, but there is already plenty of evidence that others have been, and will be hurt, have been or will be killed, and the thinly veiled evidence of emotional scarring (which is often worse than physical) indicates that our hero has a lot of bad stuff to go through yet in his story.
Well, like the tooth that loose, I can’t leave this alone… so one last thing, or maybe it’s more on the first one. I read all the previous comments here, and have carefully – avoiding spoilers – looked elsewhere and it truly does seem as if it will be 3 or 4 years until the next (and I notice few if any are saying “last” book will be published. Add to that the time for it to come out in trade paper, and the another 6-12 months for a mass market paper edition (if that ever happens, but I really can’t stand to have a set of different bindings), and I’ll be waiting more than half a decade to read the book you review here! COME ON! Why on earth would it take more than a year – the time for an average novel to be written, edited and published – for the next book? That would still put me at 2.5 or so. Phooey, now I’m getting depressed. Maybe there’s some chocolate around here somewhere…..
By the way, an unsigned 1st edition, 1st printing of the hardcover of NoTW runs about $750.
RkR: I’m the same way, I prefer to have the same bindings, and I prefer hardbacks over anything if I can get them. I’m happy that Amazon has the hardback available for less than $20, so I’ll probably snag a copy soon so that I can have all hardbacks of this. I’m not worried about the edition. Don’t get me wrong, I love having first editions, but since I’m not looking to “collect” them as an investment I will just be happy having this in hard cover.
Like I said before, I can understand your desire to wait. You can, however, cut that time down considerably by reading the paperback of Name, checking out the library copy of Wise Man’s Fear, and then getting in early on the holds list for the third one at the library once it comes out! Just saying there are options! 🙂
As for the time it takes, I would point out that the average novel isn’t 1000 pages long, so that adds to the time, plus what little I’ve heard about the author, he wants to do this thing right and the wildfire success has increased that pressure to make this trilogy the very best it can be. Would I like him to write it faster? Most definitely. But I’d also like Gaiman and Scalzi to be putting out books faster as well!
Seems like everyone is talking about this book so I’d better take the hint and get it from somewhere. I hate to miss out on a brilliant book!
You make good points, and I am somewhat soothed, even if I didn’t find any chocolate. I have a brand new copy of the MMPB of Name, and now I’ve ordered the HC (I’ll bet it’s like the 20th printing!) even before you suggested that path. There is also, I realized on a walk I just got back from, the possibility I might find something else here to read during that wait, instead of pacing circles in the rug for a few years. Since I just got the 3rd and final in Daniel Fox’s trilogy that could be a good place to start.
I also concede that “most books” are not 1000 pages long. Touche. There does seem to be an opening for additional books from what you say – think of bad guys busting into the inn between days 2 and 3, for instance, taking the thing a whole other way only to come back to the story after another book. Not likely, and no flow, but still. Or more likely, more of the character’s adventures in a following trilogy, if the author isn’t tired of him by then. Who knows. I sure do hope you’re right about this being wrapped up in three, at least enough so that the reader could stop there if s/he likes.
RkR: Don’t scare me like that Richard. As much as I loved this I am desperate for it to be a trilogy and to end. I don’t want to have to spend my days paying homage to the book gods hoping authors don’t pass away before they finish their zillion-volume story. 🙂
Seeing just a tiny portion of your bookshelves, I do believe there is absolutely no worries about you finding stuff to fill in the time between books!
Cath: That is part of the reason I was also motivated by Jeff to read this. I knew people would be talking about the second book and I kind of wanted to be in on it this time around.
Excellent review, Carl! I read this two years ago for this challenge, though I don’t think I got around to reviewing it – I think because it had so much goodness to it, I didn’t know how to say it was good. And it is, so much so, that here it is two years later, and it still rests in my mind, occasional moments from it indelibly printed on it, and I am longing to get a hold of the sequel. This is a wonderful way for you to start this challenge, Carl!
Susan: Thank you so much. I couldn’t agree more, this really was the perfect book to not only get me in the challenge mood but also to complete as my first read of OUaT V! I hope you can get to the sequel soon.
If TNoTW is truly running around $ 750 for a 1st edition hardback then you have given me a small heart attack as it must be the most valuable book I own. I’m looking at it now sitting there amongst the other books on my bookshelf between a books that you can get easily for less than $ 10 a piece thinking, WOW, it really doesn’t look all that different from any of my other books. $ 750 seems just unreal and what makes it even crazier is that I didn’t even buy it. Someone gave it to me as a gift. They didn’t have any interest in it and thought I might like it. I had never heard of the author but I liked the cover.
Jeff: I can hear the “cha-ching” sounds in your mind from here!
I just looked at my copy and it’s in pretty good shape but not perfect. The cover is great because I always take the covers off my hardbacks to read them but then the book it self has some where then on the outside of it from my reading it. All the pages are in great shape. I can’t ever imagine selling it but it’s nice to think I have a book worth some coin. 🙂
Jeff, that’s for a First Edition FIRST PRINTING, in the original dust jacket, not the second or alternate jacket. We are talking about the initial print run of the book, before it became very well known, let alone popular. You can get more general info on this at:
http://www.booklibris.com/BLFirstEditionID.htm
Also be aware that the TRUE first edition of NoTW is the UK edition, as it proceeded the U.S. version by a month or 2, I believe. There were apparently at least 9 printings of the first edition, perhaps more. The book you’d buy on Amazon today is also the first edition, but not worth more than you’d pay.
I understand what your saying Richard and I do have a 1st printing of the first edition with a dustjacket. The person I received it from was a newspaper reviewer who is a friend of mine that I shall not name who gave it to me. It’s not an ARC copy and not a UK edition. I’ve seen photos off Patrick’s website of the inside of a first edition copyright page and I know I have the real deal. I’ve known that part for awhile it’s just that I didn’t know they were going for that higher dollar.
Then congrats to you, Jeff. If it were me, I’d sell it while it’s hot and buy the current printing hardcover. I did that once before, about a decade ago, with about 50 mystery hyper-moderns I had, All FE/FP, signed. Made out like a bandit, then bought paperback editions for reading. Slick as oiled marble.
So I said I was NOT going to buy any more books for OUaT this year…that I was going to read from my stacks…but I don’t know if I can do that now :p This sounds too good to pass up. I’ve been wanting to read this one for a while actually…and I was reminded of that when the new book came out. Dammit…I’m getting it.
Wow, this sounds fabulous. I hadn’t heard of this author – but on going to my library’s catalog I see that every copy in our library system is checked out, which is unusual for a book that came out a few years ago. It’s on my list now – thanks!
Darla: Not surprising really, because the sequel just came out and is doing very well, so I imagine that a bunch of people are just like me and hadn’t read it and wanted to go ahead and do so. I hope you can get it soon and that you enjoy it. 🙂
Chris: Sorry! You could follow Darla’s example and check the library. I do think you would enjoy this one.
RkR/Jeff: I don’t know what I would do if I had a book worth a good deal of money (that I hadn’t paid much for…I do have a couple that are worth a bit but I paid a bit for them as well). I think I’d be really tempted to sell it, and then if I did I think I’d regret it for the rest of my life. Especially given the fact that the days are numbered for print editions of books, more’s the pity.
hot dang! another exciting recommendation. your enthusiasm is like a currency, carl. it inthuses othera who in turn enthuse yet more people – and so on.
this looks very exciting and i’ve been wanting to read some fantasy again, so this is a timely recommendation.
btw, i love that place you must be in now. alive with excitememt after having read this and just finished playing thaf game.
JP: Yes indeed, it is a pleasurable place to be, that’s for sure. I have no doubt that you will enjoy this book if you decide to pick it up. It is very, very good. I’m looking forward to getting into Day Two of Kvothe’s storytelling. I’m glad the enthusiasm comes through as that is always my hope. Thanks JP.
Hmmm…maybe I need to add this to my list of possibilities for the Once Upon a Time challenge.
My brother told me about this book. We haven’t read it yet but it’s been getting a LOT of praise. I need to read this. At some point.
Amanda, Emily: I know there are always a ton of books to read, but do make sure to put this on your list for sometime, because it is very, very good.
I loved this one too. Off to get the next book from the library tomorrow 😉
I need to get back to the second book. I got off track for a bit with some nonfiction books.
Carl I must have been in the midst of my move and missed this review back in March, but I’ve just finished it (my first Once Upon a Time read) and loved it. I agree completely with your review.
And thanks to the wonders/evils of modern technology I’ve just bought book two and hope to start it soon. Look forward to reading your review of that too.
Fence: I hope your move went well. It has been way too long since I’ve been over to your site, my apologies. I need to get over there to see if you wrote anything about it. I’m glad you enjoyed Name of the Wind. I haven’t had much of a chance to get to the second book, partially because of work and partially because of other reading whims, but I do have high hopes that I will enjoy it as much as this first one.
Hi Carl
So glad that you gave this book a top rating. This and the Wise Man’s Fear are two of my favourite books of all time (without a doubt). I think I love Patrick Rothfuss – hope No.3 comes out a bit quicker than No.2 – although having said that PR just wants his work to be perfect and you can’t really fault him for that.
Reading your review makes me want to go back and read again!
Thanks
Lynn 😀
Thanks Lynn, it is one amazing book. I really need to get to read The Wise Man’s Fear?!