Most books written by politicians (or their ghosts) are horrible. I never read Obama's Dreams of My Father, mainly because I read Audacity of Hope first, and it was a typical, ghost-written hagiography. Nonetheless, there have been some politicians whose pens were as mighty as their swords. Here's my list.
Classical:
Julius Caesar and Marcus Aurelius. Meditations has never been out of print, and Caesar has long been feted for his literary skills. I'm sure there were others I haven't considered. Feel free to add.
Russia
Lenin was a brilliant pamphleteer. And Stalin was a published poet. He rose in the ranks of the Communist party by editing Pravda.
Italy
Frederick 2's book on Falconry has never been out of print.
China
Mao's "little Red Book" was a best seller.
Britain
Disraeli was a novelist (I've never read his novels). Churchill wrote the voluminous history of WW2 (I read an abridged version).
United States
Kennedy won a Pulitzer -- but he didn't write Profiles in Courage. Jefferson cribbed most of the Declaration from Locke. My vote for best writer who was President: U.S. Grant. His autobiography -- which he wrote while dying of cancer -- is superb. It was so good that many people thought his buddy Sam Clemens wrote it. I've read some of his battlefield reports. They are elegant, descriptive, dramatic and short. He gets my vote.
I'm sure I've overlooked some excellent choices. Any suggestions?
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