Wool [Paperback]

Hugh Howey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 29, 2011

Thousands of them have lived underground. They've lived there so long, there are only legends about people living anywhere else. Such a life requires rules. Strict rules. There are things that must not be discussed. Like going outside. Never mention you might like going outside. Or you'll get what you wish for.

Editorial Reviews

Review

#1 Bestseller on Amazon * Winner of Kindle Book Review's Best Indie Book of 2012 Award

From the Author

In the summer of 2011, Wool was released as a standalone story with little thought that it would ever become so popular. It soon took on a life of its own, and reviewers clamored for more. The next four books were released to satisfy this demand, each one growing in size. Wool 5 is 250 pages long in print. All five books have now been collected in an Omnibus edition, but they were always meant to be read individually. 

Wool is the length of a novelette, or about 12,000 words (60 pages). Science Fiction has a long history of celebrating the short form. I'm excited to be able to offer this work for free. Enjoy.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 56 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (July 29, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1461057205
• ISBN-13: 978-1461057208
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5,403 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #680,485 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Hugh Howey is the author of the award-winning Molly Fyde Saga and the New York Times and USA Today bestselling WOOL series. The WOOL OMNIBUS won Kindle Book Review's 2012 Indie Book of the Year Award -- it has been as high as #1 in the Kindle store -- and 17 countries have picked up the work for translation. Look for WOOL in hardback in 2013 from Random House UK and keep your fingers crossed that Ridley Scott and Steve Zaillian will do something exciting with the film rights!

Hugh lives in Jupiter, FL with his wife Amber and their dog Bella. When he isn't writing, he's reading or taking a photograph.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#38 Overall (See top 100 authors)

#2 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Science Fiction

#3 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction

#4 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

#6 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Action & Adventure

#7 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Action & Adventure

#2 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Science Fiction

#3 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction

#4 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

#6 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Action & Adventure

#7 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Action & Adventure

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1,176 of 1,327 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Probably destined to be a Science Fiction Classic February 9, 2012

By Ronald A. Tognazzini

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I am a long time science fiction reader and have read many wonderful stories that are based on science, technology, engineering and math. A few years ago I purchased a Kindle and it has opened up opportunities for me to read more with less effort and at less expense. I now have over two hundred science fiction books listed in my archives. Four days ago, I purchased the Wool Omnibus Edition by Hugh Howey. I finished it about an hour ago. This is the first review that I have ever been inspired to write about any book.

Some reviewers say that they cannot put a book down, once they get started into it. I have not understood this compulsion until last night, for the first time I had a hard time sleeping. I stopped reading sometime after midnight at a point in the book that left me anxious about the main character and was unwilling to disturb my wife by turning the light on or getting out of bed to pick up where I had left off. It takes a powerful piece of work to make me worry over what I know is fiction.

One small note to other authors that might be reading this review, part of what makes Wool a joy to read is the lack of grammatical and spelling errors of so many of the self published books. It is an extreme annoyance and distraction to me to read sentences in a book that I must stop, and reread substituting words that I think the author meant to understand the idea being communicated. Please take the time, your time or the time of others, to critically review your writing and fix these sentences that act as stumbling blocks for the reader on the journey you want to share with them. I and suspect many other readers would be willing to pay more for a book without grammatical and spelling errors.

I suspect this collection of a continuing story is going to become a classic. For many years now I have read and reread Foundation by Isaac Asimov and Dune by Frank Herbert along with other classics. This omnibus has the same deep commitment to the development of the characters and their feelings as they are caught up in a series of events that shape their future in an uplifting way from darker times. It is not complicated by a large cast of characters, like some series feel is necessary, but the few characters it does have are intertwined with one another and others in their society in a common journey through their lives.

I would highly recommend this to others, because I am sure that I will be rereading this story again and again.

420 of 472 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing... Expectations exceeded April 30, 2012

By William J. Wilson

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

First, the negatives.

Okay, now to the positives. The plot, the characters, the ideas, the writing... All amazing. The author has created something truly great here. I had never read anything by Hugh Howey before, but based solely on this omnibus edition of "Wool", he has been added to my personal top 5 list of sci-fi authors.

This is truly immersive story-telling, with well-developed, complex, believable characters, amazingly descriptive prose, jaw-dropping plot developments, deep concepts, and one kickass storyline. The last book that impressed me so thoroughly was "Hyperion" by Dan Simmons. "Hyperion" had a more mystical quality, wheras "Wool" is somehow more gritty and real. Both are examples of superior science fiction.

I am so happy to have discovered "Wool"... It has revived in me a love of reading that I thought I'd lost. Thank you, Hugh Howey.

366 of 414 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply the Best February 10, 2012

By Kate

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I read over a hundred books a year. All genres. I don't give a 5 rating lightly. For me a 4 can be something great. A 5 is something that is great and stays with me long after I read it. This will stay with me. I was there with the characters and in that silo from the first few pages. I could feel every emotion, frustration, and even the physical sensation of being dizzy and tired from the trips through the silo. The story kept building and I wanted to know everything and couldn't put it down. Truly superior writing and storytelling. I can honestly say it was one of the best things I've ever read and makes what I thought were some pretty good books seem terrible now. . .I'm talking to you Hunger Games. I look forward to the day when this has its own movie too because it surely deserves it.