The Name of the Wind: Day 1

The Kingkiller Chronicle Day 1
Patrick Rothfuss
DAW Books, Mar 27, 2007
Kindle ed, 662 pages
Genre(s): Fantasy
Source: purchased at full price

Other books in this series: The Wise Man’s Fear: Day 2, The Slow Regard of Silent Things: Book 2.5, Doors of Stone: Day 3 (currently no release date)

Synopsis:
“My name is Kvothe.

I have stolen princesses back from sleeping barrow kings. I burned down the town of Trebon. I have spent the night with Felurian and left with both my sanity and my life. I was expelled from the University at a younger age than most people are allowed in. I tread paths by moonlight that others fear to speak of during the day. I have talked to Gods, loved women, and written songs that make the minstrels weep.

You may have heard of me.”

So begins a tale unequaled in fantasy literature—the story of a hero told in his own voice. It is a tale of sorrow, a tale of survival, a tale of one man’s search for meaning in his universe, and how that search, and the indomitable will that drove it, gave birth to a legend.

About the Author:
It all began when Pat Rothfuss was born to a marvelous set of parents. Throughout his formative years, they encouraged him to do his best, gave him good advice, and were no doubt appropriately dismayed when he failed to live up to his full potential.

In high school, Pat was something of a class clown. His hobbies included reading a novel or two a day and giving relationship advice to all his friends despite the fact that he had never so much as kissed a girl. He also role-played and wrote terrible stories about elves. He was pretty much a geek.

Most of Pat’s adult life has been spent in the University Wisconsin Stevens Point. In 1991 he started college in order to pursue a career in chemical engineering, then he considered clinical psychology. In 1993 he quit pretending he knew what he wanted to do with his life, changed his major to “undecided,” and proceeded to study whatever amused him. He also began writing a book….

For the next seven years, Pat studied anthropology, philosophy, eastern religions, history, alchemy, parapsychology, literature, and writing. He studied six different martial arts, practiced improv comedy, learned how to pick locks, and became a skilled lover of women. He also began writing a satirical advice column which he continues to this day: The College Survival Guide. Through all of this, he continued to work on his novel.

In 2000 Pat went to grad school for English literature. Grad school sucked and Pat hated it. However, Pat learned that he loved to teach. He left in 2002 with his master’s degree, shaking the dust from his feet and vowing never to return. During this period of time, his novel was rejected by roughly every agent in the known universe.

Now Pat teaches half-time at his old school as an assistant-sub-lecturer. He is underpaid but generally left alone to do as he sees fit with his classes. He is the advisor for the college feminists, the fencing club, and, oddly enough, a sorority. He still roll-plays occasionally, but now he does it in an extremely sophisticated, debonair way.

Through a series of lucky breaks, he has wound up with the best agent and editor imaginable, and the first book of his trilogy has been published under the title “The Name of the Wind.”

Though it has only been out since April 2007, it has already been sold in 26 foreign countries and won several awards.

Pat has been described as “a rough, earthy iconoclast with a pipeline to the divine in everyone’s subconscious.” But honestly, that person was pretty drunk at the time so you might want to take it with a grain of salt.

My Disclaimer:  I purchased this book (and the second book) for full price after reading a review by Brendon Sanderson. I am providing an honest review for which I am receiving no compensation of any kind. All opinions are fully my own.
~ Judi E. Easley for Blue Cat Review

My Review:
What an amazing story! No wonder Brandon Sanderson was so impressed with it. I am, too! The world-building that was done to create this setting is great! The character is certainly well-developed with lots of depth and more to come. Other characters not so much, they are peripherals at this point. Though some are more developed than others. No one is as developed as the main character known as Kvothe or Kote or Reshi. What he’s called depends on who you are or what you want him for. But the story is his life. We could almost call it an autobiography or a memoir.

We hear about his younger years growing up with a traveling family and learning the beginnings of sympathy. Sympathy is what they call magic. Kvothe has a very good mind and picks things up quickly. He learns things easily and fast. Faster than even the fast learners. And he is good with music and his lute.

Then disaster strikes when he’s not there. His whole life is changed. It creates a focus for him and sends him off to the University to find answers. One thing he’d never really learned, though, was humility. And he didn’t understand why he couldn’t go ahead of others if he knew more. This was something he had to figure out quickly before it got him into more trouble than he could handle. Good thing he was a quick learner with a good brain! He got quite enough stripes as it was! He came very close to being expelled from University because he’d made an enemy that just wasn’t going to back down. And while Kvothe was poor and living by his wits and music, Ambrose had a rich father to fall back on and enough money to pay for nasty tricks and deeds in the dark. And, of course, there’s a girl to add to the mix and cause him trouble.

Since the series is called the Kingkiller Chronicle, I suspect in the next book we’ll get to hear how someone kills the king. Namely, Kvothe. He’s the main character and this is the chronicle of his life. Sounds like pretty good reasoning to me, but then it’s my reasoning and I haven’t read the next book, yet.

I was confused when I looked at the title page of the book. It called it Day 1 rather than Book 1. But now that I’ve read it to the end, I understand. The whole of the first book takes place in one day. It’s all a story being told for Chronicler to write down. That’s what Chronicler does. He goes around writing down stories of what people do. Now he’s tracked down Kvothe and wants his story. Kvothe has told him he needs three days to tell it. So this book is Day One. Book two is already available and calledThe Wise Man’s Fear: Day Two. I have no idea when the third book, Doors of Stone: Day Three will be available, though. It is in a rewrite stage with no current release date. There is a related book called The Slow Regard of Silent Things. It’s Auri’s story and is only 177 pages.

The next book in this series is The Wise Man’s Fear: Day Two (1007 pages) and is currently available from booksellers.