Book Review | Wool by Hugh Howey

Wool is a science fiction/dystopian novel from Hugh Howey.

Book Description

This Omnibus Edition collects the five Wool books into a single volume. It is for those who arrived late to the party and who wish to save a dollar or two while picking up the same stories in a single package.

The first Wool story was released as a standalone short in July of 2011. Due to reviewer demand, the rest of the story was released over the next six months. My thanks go out to those reviewers who clamored for more. Without you, none of this would exist. Your demand created this as much as I did.

This is the story of mankind clawing for survival, of mankind on the edge. The world outside has grown unkind, the view of it limited, talk of it forbidden. But there are always those who hope, who dream. These are the dangerous people, the residents who infect others with their optimism. Their punishment is simple. They are given the very thing they profess to want: They are allowed outside.

I am in love with this series. Wool wasn't perfect, but I loved it pretty hard core.

Dystopians and I haven't gotten along for a while now, but Wool has reminded me of everything I love about a great dystopian.

So what's the dystopian hook with Wool? A silo. The earth has become uninhabitable, and those who have survived live in a giant silo below the ground.

There is a view up top of the outside, but it's dangerous to spend time dreaming or wondering about the outside. The highest crime is professing a desire to go outside. The punishment for committing such a taboo? You get your wish. They send you outside.

The first half of the book was awesome. It was exciting to have my love for dystopia totally renewed. As Wool progressed, I had more and more trouble suspending my disbelief and there were a couple of plot holes, but overall the suspense and the characters and my curiosity about the silo and the world outside was plenty enough to overcome the technicalities.

The Wool omnibus is also the first book in the Silo series, but for those of you who are series shy, it can absolutely stand on its own. If Wool hadn't weighed in at 500+ pages, there's no doubt I would have immediately picked up the next book in the Silo series. I get reader burn out easy, though, so I know better than to jump into another chunky monkey from the same series. I'm happy to add the Silo series to my current favorites, and I look forward to reading Shift in the near future.

If you enjoy post-apocalyptic and dystopian books (with a strong female lead!), Wool is definitely a book you should put on your radar.

8/10: Great Read

If you haven't heard Hugh Howey's self publishing story, it is fascinating. Have you read Wool? Do you have any favorite dystopian books you'd like to recommend?