A Political Education: A Washington Memoir

This is an excellent look at how D.C. works from the inside. If you ever wanted to know why passing a bill isn't as simple as what you learned in high school govt., this is the best description of the human element in politics that I have ever read. The author vividly describes how the people and pressures in Washington create the practical (rather than ideal) government which leads the U.S. I would recommend this book to anyone with even the slightest interest in US politics. It is slightly dated (and thus a good history book for the 50's and 60's), but that doesn't hurt its value to the current reader.