A jumbled mess of an adaptation of a very compelling book. While some of the art was interesting (I had not thought about the scale of some of the rooms in the silo), much was just as jumbled and difficult to understand as the plot. The most significant casualties of cramming a 500 page novel into a 160 comic are the characters. Only a glimmer of them remained. Disappointing. ( )

A. Fast version of the original

I don't think I have ever read a graphic version of a book but since I liked Wool so much I gave it a try. It was good, the actual novel though is much better.
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If you're thinking of reading this before or instead of the novel, think again, my friend. Don't do it.

I loved the novel, and I was looking forward to this adaptation, but it made me sad instead. People who have already read this book will be able to fill in the blanks, but the people who haven't will probably be wondering what all the fuss is about. It's more like an illustrated outline-it gives away all the important stuff without any development or tension. It moved too quickly from scene to scene, and the artwork was so dark it was hard to see what was happening (yes, I get why it was dark, but the effect was more frustrating than atmospheric).

If you've read the book and you're curious about the graphic novel adaptation, do what you will. I won't try to stop you.

But you probably won't love it. ( )

I've not yet read Hugh Howey's hugely popular self-published novel Wool, but if this graphic adaptation is true to his storyline, then he is a fantastic storyteller. He creates a believable apocalyptic future in which the few surviving humans live underground in several independent silos. The behavior of the inhabitants is constantly monitored and rigidly controlled by the IT department. Any variation from established norms means certain death, as non-conforming individuals are sent to "clean", sent outside of the unit in a supposedly protective suit that always seems to fail within thirty steps from the silo.

Although kept from a holistic view of how the mechanical, IT, food supply and medical facilities work together as functioning units, and kept from the knowledge that there are other silos, some of the brighter mechanics begin to figure out that the lack of protection from the poisonous outside atmosphere provided by the cleaning suits may be intentional. Where this knowledge leads begins a deeply engaging adventure story. ( )