The Silo Series: WOOL by Hugh Howey
“There is one rule: Never say you want to go outside”. If it sounds like the start to a sci-fi horror film or novel, you would be correct. Hugh Howey’s mesmerizing debut novel, Wool, the first in his Silo Trilogy, poses this very line and for good reason.
The outside world has become incapable of supporting life of any kind. Trees have died, birds no longer fill the sky, and those who venture outside meet a painful demise. There doesn’t seem to be much hope for human survival but that is where the Silo comes in. A large circular building situated underground where the last of humanity lives, works, and plays. Everyone has a role to play in the hundreds of levels and each person is expected to contribute.
When the Sheriff of the Silo claims that he wants to go outside, he is arrested and sentenced to “clean”. An act that is considered a last noble task before someone leaves the Silo forever. Equipped with a hazmat suit and steel wool, the sheriff is entrusted with scrapping the dust and grim from the camera that shows the outside world to those within the Silo.
Once his task is complete, a new sheriff must be appointed but that is easier said then done. When the Mayor’s original (and less than qualified) choice for the position is chosen, tensions begin to rise within the Silo and it may spell disaster for everyone who call the Silo home.
While the question of, “Is the outside world really as toxic a they say?”, may linger in readers’ minds throughout the course of the novel, it is quickly forgotten because of how fast paced Howey has made his novel.
There is rarely time to create hypotheses while reading because just when it seems like an answer appears, the reader is thrust into a tailspin all thanks to a series of edge-of-your-seat events. Howey has crafted a vibrant masterpiece of a novel. That only is heightened by the fact that he has written a trilogy and therefore the reader is not forced to leave the world that they most likely, do not want to leave any time soon.
If there is any indication of the level of mastery on display here, Apple TV+ has created a television series based on the novels. For those who are interested in the show, be warned, the show only covers a slice of the first novel and while there are some major differences, it is just as spectacular as the novel.
Wool is a fantastic kick off to what can only be assumed will be a top notch trilogy.
