Book Review : Wool by Hugh Howey

Rating : 5/5

This review contains some spoilers.

Wool is a series of 5 science fiction novellas by American writer Hugh Howey. The first novella was published as a short story in July, 2011. This and the following 4 editions are usually considered the Wool series (as different from a prequel trilogy and from “Dust”, also written by Hugh).

“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.”
- From the author’s website

Having read Wool, I have to believe that legends take time to build. That the only reason Hugh Howey is not already counted among the elite of sci-fi writing is that its been only a few years since this book (or series, if you prefer. I think of this as a single book both because the individual stories are so short and because they are too tightly knit to be thought of as separate) came out. I have definitely been shouting from my rooftop to anyone who cares to listen — this is one of the best sci-fi books I have ever read.