The Three Books that Have Impacted Me

Several years ago, when interviewing for a teaching job, I was asked to name the three books that have had an impact on me. Since then I have thought a great deal about how I would answer that question in relation to my teaching of history. Here is how it stands at present.
First would be Robert E. Lee and the Road of Honor by Hodding Carter. In the 1960s Random House brought out a series of history books for children written by journalists, the Landmark Series. This was the first history book I had ever read and I was hooked. I reread it about five years ago and it still holds up, informative, easy to understand and well-written.
Next would be Charles Beard's Economic Interpretation of the Constitution. Granted the book is nearly a century old and many subsequent works have been written to refute it but Beard still retains an impact on all students of American History. Harold Bloom wrote in The Anxiety of Influence that Shakespeare has a pervasive influence on contemporary man even if he is not read because of his impact on not just language but our view of humanity. Beard's influence is similar for historians because of his emphasis on research.
Third would be a work better classified as political philosophy. That is The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt. In this massive tome Arendt posits the steps that lead to a totalitarian government. First, Anti-Semitism, then Imperialism, finally totalitarianism. This book has affected my thought about US History. If we change Anti-Semitism to Racism, can we apply Arendt's thesis to the United States?