I warn you, much of the literature of economics is dreary in the extreme. It isn't called "the dismal science" for nothing. If you are going to read just one major work in economics, I would suggest Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations. It is a slog in places, and I certainly don't agree with everything he says, but it is one of those books that any educated person should be familiar with.

When I was taking a 19th century English history course, my professor told me that I was going to write my term paper on the economics of imperialism. (Everyone else in the class was given his or her own choice.) I asked why, and he said that I would understand when I started doing the research. I went to the library, and right off the bat, I found the book Imperialism by John Hobson. Compared to Imperialism, Karl Marx's Capital is scintillating.