Full Disclosure: Jim Geraghty is a friend.

If all comedy is borne of tragedy, then we should lament that Jim Geraghty's The Weed Agency is so funny that it hit the Washington Post's Top Ten Bestsellers list (well deserved) last week. But here's the rub: It hit the nonfiction list. Think about that for a second -- Jim's book, while technically a parody billed as "a comic tale of federal bureaucracy without limits," is such an insightful dissection at how our government works that the Washington Post decided it should be listed on the nonfiction list.

Unfortunately, sometimes you can only tell the truth through fiction and and Jim certainly does that. With fifteen years of federal service under my own belt, I wish I could dispute anything he highlights in the tale but Jim knows whereof he speaks. While he exaggerates for effect as all good satire does, he not exaggerating nearly as much as we should hope. After spending fifteen years in federal service, I can say that his story dredges up more painful memories of bureaucratic sausage-making than I would like.

Jim's a conservative -- he writes for the National Review -- but don't let that steer you away if you're not. Anyone with a vested interest in efficient government -- which should be everyone -- who reads The Weed Agency will find themselves wondering whether they should laugh or cry.