The Name of the Wind
by Patrick Rothfuss
★ Top 10 book of 2007 · #6 on Best Books of 2007
Kvothe, a young man destined to become a notorious magician, tells his own story, from a childhood among traveling players to life as a street orphan and entry into a dangerous school of magic. It explores how a hero can become trapped by his own legend.
Best for: Epic fantasy lovers who enjoy a first-person tale of magic and myth
The Name of the Wind is #6 on BookWard's Best Books of 2007, out of 53 2007 books that cleared our data bar.
What The Name of the Wind is about
In the town of Newarre, the Waystone Inn is run by a quiet innkeeper named Kote and his assistant Bast. Kote is not who he seems. He is really Kvothe, a famous swordsman, magician and musician, rumoured to have killed a king. When a scribe called Chronicler arrives, Kvothe agrees to tell his true story over three days.
That story begins in his childhood with the Edema Ruh, a troupe of travelling performers, where the scholar Abenthy teaches him sympathy, a kind of magic. After watching Abenthy call the wind, Kvothe vows to learn its name. His father is meanwhile gathering tales of the mythical Chandrian for a ballad. Later chapters follow Kvothe as a near-feral orphan in a dangerous city and then as a student at a school of magic. Set on the continent of Temerant, where magic follows clear rules, this debut fantasy is lyrical and immersive, with a melancholy edge. It is about storytelling, and about the gap between legend and truth.
The Name of the Wind on the Best Books of 2007
The Name of the Wind came out in 2007. Of the 53 books first published in 2007 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #6 on our Best Books of 2007 list.
Why it made the list: 1,652 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.3 out of 5 (255 ratings); 77 are reading it right now. The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
It earns Reader favorite.
Nearby on the 2007 list
- A Thousand Splendid Suns Khaled Hosseini, #4
- Rodrick Rules Jeff Kinney, #5
- Call Me by Your Name André Aciman, #7
- The Well of Ascension Brandon Sanderson, #8
See all Best Books of 2007 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 2006 Best Books of 2008.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 1,230 want to read it, 77 are reading it now and 345 have read it, according to Open Library.
- Ratings: 4.3 out of 5 from 255 Open Library ratings.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 91 | 55% |
| Reader love | 91 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 89 | 20% |
Questions about The Name of the Wind
When was The Name of the Wind published?
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss was first published in 2007.
Was The Name of the Wind one of the best books of 2007?
The Name of the Wind is #6 on BookWard's Best Books of 2007, out of 53 2007 books that cleared our data bar. 1,652 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.3 out of 5 (255 ratings); 77 are reading it right now.
Why is The Name of the Wind on the Best Books of 2007 list?
1,652 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.3 out of 5 (255 ratings); 77 are reading it right now.
More of the best books of 2007
- Dog Days Jeff Kinney, #1
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows J. K. Rowling, #2
- The Titan's Curse Rick Riordan, #3
- A Thousand Splendid Suns Khaled Hosseini, #4
- Rodrick Rules Jeff Kinney, #5
- Call Me by Your Name André Aciman, #7
See the full Best Books of 2007, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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