From the Bookshelf of Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy…

The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #1)

Patrick Rothfuss

Start date: October 1, 2012

Finish date: October 31, 2012

Discussion: Book Discussions

Why we're reading this: October 2012 Contemporary (tied)
#18 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 poll) http://www.npr.o …more
[close] October 2012 Contemporary (tied)
#18 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 poll) http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/1390858...
#3 on Locus Magazines Best Fantasy novels of the 21th century http://www.locusmag.com/2012/AllCentu...

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What Members Thought

Jul 25, 2014 Jim rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, 2fiction, 3series, 1ebook

A lot of my friends have recommended & raved about this book for ages. Most gave it 5 stars & prattled on about how great Kvothe is as a hero. I thought it was a pretty good story, but I certainly wasn't overwhelmed by it. In a nut shell, the structure tends to ruin the story for me.

The book starts out in a small town in the 'now' of a fantasy world. We quickly find out that Kvothe is in hiding & he starts telling his entire life story. Variations of this have worked well for some of my favorite A lot of my friends have recommended & raved about this book for ages. Most gave it 5 stars & prattled on about how great Kvothe is as a hero. I thought it was a pretty good story, but I certainly wasn't overwhelmed by it. In a nut shell, the structure tends to ruin the story for me.

The book starts out in a small town in the 'now' of a fantasy world. We quickly find out that Kvothe is in hiding & he starts telling his entire life story. Variations of this have worked well for some of my favorite books, so that wasn't a problem - except it was. Spoilers are the biggest issue an author needs to avoid, but Rothfuss seems to revel in them. I HATE spoilers, but he tells us what will happen, just not exactly how. Worse, there are irregular intermissions back into the present that disrupt the flow & add more spoilers.

There isn't a lot opportunity for good characterization & most of those are passed up. There are a few interesting ones in the 'now', but we don't spend enough time getting to know them. The rest are described by Kvothe which makes them rather two dimensional since he's pretty self centered. That would be OK, but Kvothe is the only one who ever gets whipped, beat up, or has a run in with a teacher. If others had faced similar problems it could have rounded out many of the secondary characters & the world much better. It also made some of his claims those of a petulant child. ("I wanted it SO much, but the mean teacher banned me & it wasn't fair! Not my fault!")

On the plus side, Rothfuss managed a far higher page count than I would have expected without losing me. Part of that is a very interesting system of magic & a huge world with a lot of interesting creatures, customs, & history. On the downside, I quickly knew that I was going to have to read at least 2 more books to get the whole story & the third hasn't been published yet - one reason I've held off reading it for so long.

I'm going to read the second book & buy the first in paper so my wife can read it. I have an ebook, but Marg doesn't like them since they're a PITA to flip back in. ...more

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Mar 13, 2017 Jenelle Compton rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy

I love a good frame story. That's what this was. You had the outer story, with the Chronicler and the tavern, and the inner story, Kvothe's life story...from his point of view...and he's kind of a jerk.
How much can we trust what he tells us? Then there MORE stories that were scattered within the inner story, adding even more layers.

I really liked the stress on money in this book. The reader is constantly aware of how much of an issue it is and how poor Kvothe is. He's living from moment to mome ...more

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Oct 06, 2015 mina rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I give this book a 4 star rating because of the fun story of the University: the admission tests, the classes, the skills to be learned, the hanging out with good friends, the colourful teachers, the hard times Kvothe had as a student while having no money at all, and the LIBRARY (or let's say the lack of long description of it! I assume in Book 2 Kvothe will be kicked out soon since the very beginning of the book, so maybe the small glimpse in Book 1 is the only glimpse we have of the legendary ...more

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Sep 25, 2018 Kimberly rated it it was amazing

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I don't give a lot of 5-stars to books I read. I have read a lot of the comments/reviews by other readers, especially the ones who gave this book 1-2 stars and scathing disrespectful reviews. Even when I read a book that I can't follow or that I think is poorly written, I admire that a person can think of a story from beginning to end with characters, descriptions of places, events and interactions, and then write it all down. Sometimes I enjoy the stories, sometimes not. I am not a literary cri I don't give a lot of 5-stars to books I read. I have read a lot of the comments/reviews by other readers, especially the ones who gave this book 1-2 stars and scathing disrespectful reviews. Even when I read a book that I can't follow or that I think is poorly written, I admire that a person can think of a story from beginning to end with characters, descriptions of places, events and interactions, and then write it all down. Sometimes I enjoy the stories, sometimes not. I am not a literary critic. I judge a book by whether or not it makes me feel something. THIS book made me feel a lot of things. At times I was choked up, other times I laughed out loud, other times I had goosebumps. I LOVED this book. It's the kind of book that is long enough that I didn't feel depressed when it ended (although I know there is another one after this, so that might be why).

One of the reasons I dismiss the negative reviews of this book is because I believe the readers either didn't let themselves get far enough in to the story to see the layers beneath the layers or to see that there is so much here that actually speaks to the negative comments. Comments about Bast - his story is yet to be fleshed out. Comments about a "cocky kid who's great at everything" are put into perspective later in the book. I personally didn't feel any of these things and just blissfully enjoyed the descriptions, the people, the places, the magic. I cringed at the moments of poor judgement, the missed opportunities, the character flaws, and the flawed characters. I loved the story within a story (sometimes within another story.) This book made me feel so much more than any book I've read in a while.

I usually get bored with descriptions of things if they are too descriptive. But Patrick Rothfuss describes things in a way that feels like poetry. I didn't get bored at all. I just let myself be wrapped up in the spell, in what feels like the best of fairy tales, in the memories of one's childhood - keeping in mind that anyone's memory of their childhood is always flawed to some extent because our brains fill in blanks or change the story a little as we grow and experience new things.

Anyhow, I'm rambling and writing this immediately after I finished the book so I'm still processing it.

If there is anything wrong with this book, it is in the editing. There are a few facts that don't match up (at least twice he commented that he'd always seen Denna in traveling clothes and this was the first time he'd seen her in a gown) and a few phrases that were repeated perhaps too many times, although I suspect sometimes that was intentional. I feel like the part about the dragon was extraneous but perhaps that will be used again in a later part of this ongoing story or maybe I missed or forgot something that made that important. It doesn't matter. I give 5 stars no matter what. I can't wait to read the next book. ...more

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Apr 16, 2009 Tom rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, hard-copy, re-read

Hits all the same plot points as most traditional fantasy - young boy is done wrong by horrible, all powerful villain(s) then sets out on a life of adventure that molds him into a figure of legend. Beautiful woman, horrible monsters, self-righteous idiots, pompous fools - all make an appearance. What sets this one apart is the quality of the writing.

Looking forward to the next two books.

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