Forget summer. The best books for political junkies usually arrive with the turning of the leaves. Here are three of the juiciest and most interesting titles that soon will be available for your purchase.
Next week, the peripatetic Lawrence Wright will publish Thirteen Days in September: Carter, Begin, and Sadat at Camp David, a sure-to-be riveting, moment-by-moment history of a time when peace was both the means to an end and an end in itself, and when political leaders could be brave and forgo politics, grudges, religious attachments, and even the strong lure of national myth-making.
Matt Bai — now at Yahoo, formerly of The New York Times Magazine — will come out with a history of Gary Hart's rise and fall, which will also track the transformation of the political media at that time from observer to gawker (or even Gawker). He charts the rise of political "character" as something that the media began to prioritize over issues, policies, or resumes. All The Truth Is Out: The Fall of Gary Hart and the Rise of Tabloid Politics.
In November, President George W. Bush's portrait of his father, 41, is sure to be an instant bestseller.
Here are some other non-fiction books that I'm eager to read:
World Order by Henry Kissinger.
Nicholas D. Kristoff and Sheryl Wudunn's book about global transformation, a path towards prosperity, and an end to oppression.
Fred Schruers's biography of Billy Joel; it lost its "auto" prefix when Joel decided not to continue with the project.
A book on writing by Steven Pinker, one of science's most graceful authors.
The autobiography of legendary football coach Bill Parcells.
Walter Isaacson's book on innovators and innovation.
