"Book Review: The Name of the Wind" by Austin H

 

The Name of the Wind written by Patrick Rothfuss and published by DAW Books in 2007 is an excellent piece of fantasy literature that captivates readers from the very beginning. (Note: this is book one of three in a trilogy with the last book not having been published yet)   The prologue leaves the reader wondering exactly what the author is talking about in this short page and a half opening.  As you continue the novel you meet the story’s main character who goes by many names.  There is a long list of these names which is why it would be best to quote this character himself.

“My first mentor called me E’lir because I was clever and I knew it. My first real lover called me Dulator because she liked the sound of it. I have been called Shadicar, Lightfinger, and Six-String. I have been called Kvothe the Bloodless, Kvothe the Arcane, and Kvothe Kingkiller. I have earned those names. Bought and paid for them. But I was brought up as Kvothe. My father once told me it meant “to know”.”

While all of these names tell us about our main character’s grand adventure and what he was called along his journey, it does not tell us about the character Kote, who he has become after his journey has ended.  This novel is told as an extended flashback through the eyes of Kvothe to a storyteller we know as Chronicler who records the true stories of legends.  Kote narrates the story of his life to Chronicler as he takes on the role of a humble innkeeper who has come to the end of his journey.  Another main character in this story is known as Denna.  Kvothe first meets her traveling to the University, a place where he goes to learn the wonders of sympathy (or magic as we would call it).  She appears frequently throughout the novel and we can tell very early on Kvothe is in love with her.  Our final major character is Ambrose.  He is very central to the theme of this book which circles around revenge.  Ambrose is Kvothe’s rival and the feud between these two grows and grows up until the end of this novel.  These two characters continue to try and get revenge on each other for every wrong the other has dealt. 

The novel is mainly set at the University and Imre, the town adjacent to it, where Kvothe goes when he is about fifteen years old.  This is where he continues his training in the art of sympathy.  The University is also where he tries to learn about the Chandrian and the main reason for coming to the University in the first place.  The Chandrian make up one of the most major conflicts in the novel as Kvothe seeks information on them throughout the novel. 

The major theme of this novel revolves around revenge.  Revenge is what fuels Kvothe to achieve all of his goals, he wants revenge on his rival, Ambrose, he wants revenge on the professor that torments him Master Hemme, and most importantly he wants revenge on the Chandrian.

Rothfuss uses lots of imagery to convey his messages in this novel.  Kvothe is a musician but he weaves life into the music even though we cannot hear it through his imagery and storytelling prowess.  The language he uses flows smoothly onto the page with his use of complex sentences and extremely accurate and humorous double meanings of words with their literal and connotative meanings taking effect.  His use of all these tools together create a very immersive world that could never exist in our society but we still believe in fully.  The characters in the story act according to emotions just as we would and Rothfuss writes the story right between the line of believability and fantasy to keep us intrigued to the very end.

The characters too are believable just as the world itself is.  Kvothe is a very cunning man as he uses everything that happens to him to gain reputation so he will take a small tale and create huge rumors about it.  This creates character believability because Rothfuss never takes what actually happened to far into fantasy.  He uses the laws he created for the world to tell his story and not some character overcoming impossible odds. 

This novel is very good in terms of literary value and reader interest.  The novel can greatly expand our horizons of the fantasy genre as a whole.  Rothfuss has crafted this book into a brilliant and everlasting novel of fantasy that will be remembered for generations.  Its use of literary tools to both make it a great work of literature and grasp the reader’s interest creates a perfect novel for young readers to use to bridge from novels with less literary merit to novels with more literary merit.