The Name of the Wind

I love to read.  With everything that's been going on, it's not always easy to find time to sit down with a good book, but I do the best I can.  I'm also one of those weird people that will re-read books, which is what I did with the Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss.

The novel follows Kvothe from child to adult, but it's not quite that simple.  You are introduced to him as he tells his tale, after he is grown.  You see where he is now, but you get to wonder how he gets there, how all these stories and tales have popped up about him.  There are magics and monsters, damsels and bards.*

The book is long, but it never feels long.  The writing style is easy to read but not too simple.  Magic is treated almost like a science, with explanations as to how it all works.  You learn as Kvothe learns.  You experience his losses with him, as well as his triumphs.

The story has some very dark times, but without them, you cannot appreciate the better, lighter moments.  Before picking it up to read again, there were parts of the book that I wasn't looking forward to re-reading, but when I got to those parts, they were still interesting.  I found that my aversion to those parts were more because they were sad.  The writing is so powerful that the impression of sadness stuck with me, even though I didn't realize it at the time.

The Name of the Wind is an epic book.  It dabbles a bit in most types of fantasy, never afraid to stray here or there.  Rothfuss is also not afraid to just skip over the parts he doesn't want to tell, attributing it to Kvothe refusing to tell that bit of the story.  It's a neat and unusual decision, but it works.

Were I to choose any particular weakness found in the novel, I would have to point out the love interest.  Remembering her from my first read, I found her dull and un-worthy of the main character.  Upon re-reading the novel, I started to think that maybe I was wrong, maybe there was more to her than I remembered.  It's interesting how we remember books and such.  I still feel that the girl who has piqued the interest of Kvothe isn't quite what I would have chosen, but Rothfuss knows what he's doing, as he's proven in the novel.

If you're looking for a good book, pick up the Name of the Wind.  There are two books out from the series now.  I do have to warn you that you'll really like them and be frustrated that the next one is possibly years away.  Happy reading!

*Don't judge it based on bards.  It's okay.  Just breath in and out.