Avoid the "official" memoirs, which are full of spin. Bob Woodward is great, but he's far from the only game in town. Redemption Song: An Irish Reporter Inside the Obama Campaign by Niall Stanage is a fascinating outsider's take on American politics. Pretend I'm Not Here: How I Worked with Three Newspaper Icons, One Powerful First Lady, and Still Managed to Dig Myself Out of the Washington Swamp by Barbara Feinman Todd is a fun, under-the-radar Beltway account of being a ghostwriter for Woodward and Hillary Clinton.