The Gimlet Eye

Intrigue for Wonks

FOR a long time now I’ve been chewing over the question of why Washington novels are so bad. And they are. With a few exceptions—Democracy by Henry Adams; maybe Advise and Consent’, perhaps a few others I haven’t read—serious novels set in Washington are dead on the page, peopled with stick figures, creaking along implausible plot lines until the reader collapses in boredom, wrung dry like the orgasmic heroine who is invariably and desperately thrust into the narrative. At least the heroine gets an orgasm for her trouble.

About the Author

Andrew Ferguson

Andrew Ferguson, a former columnist for NR, is a contributing writer at The Atlantic and a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

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Intrigue for Wonks

FOR a long time now I’ve been chewing over the question of why Washington novels are so bad. And they are. With a few exceptions—Democracy by Henry Adams; maybe Advise and Consent’, perhaps a few others I haven’t read—serious novels set in Washington are dead on the page, peopled with stick figures, creaking along implausible plot lines until the reader collapses in boredom, wrung dry like the orgasmic heroine who is invariably and desperately thrust into the narrative. At least the heroine gets an orgasm for her trouble.