Saturday, August 26, 2006

Political Novels

Melanie Kirkpatrick gives her list of the top five political novels.

I'd add:

The Last Hurrah by Edwin O'Connor (Frank Skeffington is the mayor of Boston and head of a political machine that is both formidable and hilarious.)

First Among Equals by Jeffrey Archer (Which of these young men will become prime minister? You won't know until the last page.)

Lincoln by Gore Vidal (How Lincoln recreated the Union.)

I, Claudius by Robert Graves (Roman politics at its bloodiest.)

Pillar of Iron by Taylor Caldwell (A novel of Cicero and his attempts to save the Roman Republic.)

The Comedians by Graham Greene (A collection of characters in Papa Doc's Haiti)

Barchester Towers by Anthony Trollope (Anglican Church politics was never so amusing.)

The Secret of Santa Vittoria by Robert Crichton (The Italian villagers seek to protect their wine from the Germans and their buffoon of a mayor, Italo Bombolini, begins to read Machiavelli.)

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