Two of my favourite books are Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister, a political satirical series by Anthony Jay and Jonathan Lynn. Why? Because it tells the truth, and somehow, the truth is ironically hilarious. The books, adapted from a widely popular BBC sitcom in the 1980s, revolved around Jim Hacker, the accidental Prime Minister, Sir Humphrey Appleby, the Cabinet Secretary with his own agenda, and Bernard Woolley, the Prime Minister's Principal Private Secretary with a passion for linguistics.
The books were written as Jim Hacker's diary, being studied by students at Hacker College, Oxford (fabricated) in the 21st Century, which won't be another few years from now. Between his diary and the editor's notes, it is surprising to see how something that was written over 30 years ago can still be so relevant. Obviously nobody in Britain is thinking of the Russians as a threat right now, but other than that, the bureaucracy and the inertia is largely the same worldwide.
After so many years, and suffering from the death of its major casts, Paul Eddington (Hacker) and Nigel Hawthorne (Appleby), the writers decided to come up with a contemporary drama version of the story, which is now on tour around the United Kingdom. They updated it with current issues, such as equipping all the actors with a Blackberry. Reported as Lady Margaret Thatcher's favourite sitcom during her time as Prime Minister, the updated drama has received many positive reviews from the English media.
I have heard rather mixed comments about these books, which is something along the lines of either loving it or hating it. The language is subtle and you will have to appreciate the English humour to be able to take pleasure in reading it. I would imagine someone who stayed in Britain before, and is now part in Hong Kong's civil service, will enjoy these books the most, but the likelihood of that combination is... Anyhow, take a quick look at its sitcoms on Youtube before grabbing your very own copy of Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister at Paddyfield!