Silo is a series of post-apocalyptic science fiction books by American writer Hugh Howey. The series started in 2011 with the short story "Wool", which was later published together with four sequel novellas as a novel with the same name. Along with Wool, the series consists of Shift, Dust, three short stories and Wool: The Graphic Novel.
Background
Howey first began the series in 2011, initially writing Wool as a stand-alone short story. He published the work throughAmazon'sKindle Direct Publishing system, choosing to do so due to the freedom of self-publishing. After the series grew in popularity, he began to write more entries for it. Howey began soliciting international rights in 2012, and has since signed a deal for dramatic rights in Brazil. Film rights to the series were sold to 20th Century Fox; Lionsgate also expressed interest. Howey signed a print-only deal for around $500,000 with Simon & Schuster to distribute Wool to book retailers across the US and Canada. Howey retains full rights to continue distributing Wool online himself.
Plot
The story of Wool takes place on a post-apocalyptic Earth. Humanity clings to survival in the Silo, a subterranean city extending one hundred forty-four stories beneath the surface. The series initially follows the character of Holston, the sheriff of the Silo, with subsequent volumes focusing on the characters of Juliette, Jahns, and Marnes. An ongoing storyline of the series is the focus on the mystery behind the Silo and the secrets it holds. The mystery is eventually revealed at the end of book five; Shift, which encompasses books six through eight, comprise a prequel to the series. Book nine, Dust, pulls the storylines together. Several studies frame the story within the dystopian genre, since Howey includes several of the main features of that type of literature, i.e. a totalitarian rule, rebellion of the main characters or a planned separation between the manned areas and wild natural spaces.
Wool
The intro teaser for the book is: "If the lies don't kill you, the truth will."
Wool initially follows the story of Holston, the Silo's sheriff. All residents of the Silo have been taught that the outside world is toxic and deadly, and anyone who expresses any desire to go outside is sent to clean the external sensors. Those who are sent outdoors this way inevitably clean the sensors as instructed, but they also inevitably die a few minutes later. Three years prior to the events of the story, Holston's wife became convinced that the outside world was actually livable and that the IT department had deceived the rest of the silo. She went to cleaning willingly, but apparently perished. Three years later, still grieving the loss of his wife, Holston also asks to go outside. He is given a protective suit and sent outside, but when he exits the silo he sees a healthy, vibrant world. Encouraged by this sight, he happily cleans the silo's external sensors and then starts to explore the environment. However, he is forced to remove his helmet when he runs out of air, and at that point he discovers that the world actually is toxic and his wife is dead. The suit's visor had been masking reality with a computer-generated image. Holston dies near his wife's abandoned body. These events serve as a catalyst for the remaining books.
Book 2 - ''Proper Gauge''
A new sheriff is needed to replace the recently-deceased Holston. Major Jahns and Deputy Marnes embark on a trip to the silo's lowest region in order to interview Juliette, their top candidate for sheriff. Along the way they encounter various areas of the silo, including the mysterious IT department. Bernard, the head of IT, demands his own preferred candidate for sheriff but Jahns dismisses his concerns. Privately, Jahns also contemplates a relationship with Marnes. Jahns and Marnes meet Juliette in the Machinery zone, the lowest level of the silo. Juliette quickly proves herself to be responsible, stubborn and independent, which impresses Jahns. After expressing some hesitation, Juliette agrees to take the job. On the return trip, Jahns and Marnes privately begin a romantic relationship. Bernard is incensed to learn that Jahns has formally appointed Juliette to be the new sheriff, and is likewise angry with Marnes for supporting this decision. Soon afterward, Jahns falls ill. In her final moments, she realizes that she had consumed a fatal poison from Marnes's canteen. Meanwhile, Juliette completes an important maintenance project on the silo's primary generator, but soon receives the news of the mayor's sudden death.
Books 3-5
The saga is continued in Casting Off and runs through The Stranded, as Juliette continues to explore the mysteries of the Silos, bringing her into contact with the head of IT and Lukas, a young astronomer and member of IT. The growing relationship between Lukas and Juliette serves as a backdrop for the remaining three novellas, as the mystery of the Silos is gradually revealed.
Shift
;Book 6 - Legacy First Shift is a prequel to the story in the first five Wool novels, where the actions that led to the status quo of the world are explained through the eyes of Donald Keene, a young congressman, and Troy, a silo chief. ;Book 7 - Order Second Shift follows a few of the characters of Book 6 when they are woken from cold-sleep 100 years later to be consulted on some unresolved problems, as well as a young new character in silo 18 named Mission, where they are experiencing internal fighting which threatens their survival. ;Book 8 - Pact Third Shift brings a close to the prequel trilogy. It tells the story of the fall of Silo 17, and the transformation of Jimmy into Solo, as well as the continued story of Donald Keene in Silo 1.
Dust
;Book 9 - Dust Dust is the third and final act in the Silo stories. It brings together the lives of Donald, Juliette and the other people in Silo 18, and the survivors from Silo 17.
A reviewer for Wired praised the omnibus, stating that it "clears away the grime of the past and reveals the new truth" about change in publishing. Fans have been inspired to write their own scenes, chapters and novels.
In July 2013, it was announced that Amazon's new comic book imprint Jet City Comics would be releasing a comic book adaptation of the series. Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray will adapt the story and Jimmy Broxton will create the artwork. On July 9, 2013, Howey released a preview of the comic book's cover on his blog. The graphic novel was published in August 2014.
