Welcome to my monthly book recommendation for June! Every month, I recommend a book that I’ve personally read and find worthwhile enough to recommend to my own readers. In each post, I’ll introduce the book, discuss why I found reading it worthwhile, and the major themes the book touches upon. I won’t include any major spoilers, but I may discuss some of the characters and specific details or locations from within the book.
My recommendation for June 2025 is Patrick Rothfuss’ The Name of the Wind.
The Name of the Wind
Available on Amazon
Authors: Patrick Rothfuss
Genre: Fantasy fiction
Description: 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 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.
My Thoughts
I was first introduced to The Name of the Wind by my former manager during my time at Amazon. It was an excellent recommendation because it introduced me to a new type of fantasy fiction I’ve never explored, and because the book itself was a pleasure to read.
The protagonist, Kvothe, is beautifully written with a blend of contradictions. He’s intelligent but impulsive, good-hearted yet petty, thoughtful yet prone to thoughtlessness, and overall, a man at odds with himself. His unique talents and startling ability to forgo their use give him a singular ability to reverse his fortune, for better or worse, at the sway of a pendulum. And sway it does. Tragic circumstances thrust him into a path of trials and miseries, but his own decisions are partly responsible for keeping him there. With one foot, he steps off the path, but with the other, steps right back on. Talent is no guarantee of success or happiness. Nonetheless, it feels as if he has a strong inner-light. The supporting characters have their own unique light as well – they don’t exist simply to serve the storyline and propel Kvothe along his journey, but to bring their own unique thoughts and feelings to the reader.
Rothfuss brilliantly paints the world around us as we follow Kvothe through his self-narrated story, a narration style that enables Kvothe himself to brush in the occasional embellishment. It’s not grand cities or sweeping distances that reveal to us the scale of this painted world, but culture and conflict. Kvothe finds himself in a cosmopolitan setting where music, language, science, and magic from disparate regions of the world churn together in a mixing pot built of young, ambitious individuals, each with their own talents, desires, and prejudices. With Rothfuss’ style of writing, a group of five people could sit down at a bar and have a drunken conversation that hints at the sheer breadth of this world.
His story, and those stories within, are driven by emotion. His characters are human, and above all, humans are driven by emotion, and some, by passion. This is what elevates his worldbuilding, character development, and our ability to sympathize with the characters in these stories, to feel as if we are personally invested in their successes and failures. In my opinion, this is the element that lifts The Name of the Wind, and its sequel The Wise Man’s Fear, beyond a mere story of fantasy, elevating it to the rank of timeless classic.
The first book in the series leaves us with both a grand finale, and an open path to continue our journey through the second book. However, the second book lacks that grand finale, but more importantly, lacks an open path, because after thirteen years since its release, Patrick Rothfuss has failed to publish the third and final book of the series. I’ve found conflicting information regarding this final book, so I cannot say with any certainty if it will be released at all. Personally, I still found these two books to be worth reading, but if you are bothered by unfinished stories, then consider this a warning.
Despite this warning, I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in any genre of fiction. I believe it’s a story that has something for everyone – adventure, conflict, and trials, as well as nuance and philosophical musing for those who read for depth.
