Synopsis: The riveting first-person narrative of a young man who grows to be the most notorious magician his world has ever seen. From his childhood in a troupe of traveling players, to years spent as a near-feral orphan in a crime- ridden city, to his daringly brazen yet successful bid to enter a legendary school of magic, The Name of the Wind is a masterpiece that transports readers into the body and mind of a wizard. It is a high-action novel written with a poet's hand, a powerful coming-of-age story of a magically gifted young man, told through his eyes: to read this book is to be the hero.
Review: The Name of the Wind is one of those scary books you feel like you have to love, or you'll be banned from reading fantasy forever. Kvothe was an interesting character and I liked seeing his experiences growing up between working with a performing troupe and going to the University. He is smart, but he doesn't flaunt his intelligence. I didn't know much about this book, but I knew Kvothe was a young man who was telling his story to another character. Still, it was surprising to me seeing Kvothe as a child. The bulk of this book focuses on Kvothe in University. That's fine, but I do wish we got to see his relationship with the troupe a bit more. It felt like such a small part of his life even though it devastated him.
The story was interesting, but subtle. Kvothe suffers a tragedy, but he doesn't recklessly go after this evil thing. He takes his time and develops his skills. That being said, I found myself forgetting there was something for Kvothe to fight. The structure of this story is unique as it starts with Kvothe telling his story to a travelling writer. This gives Kvothe the liberty to make things up as he goes along. I found this interesting because I often was asking myself, "How much of this is accurate?" I'm wondering if any characters call Kvothe out and reveal some of his lies.
Interesting take on typical fantasy stories. Curious to see what happens next.
4 howls
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