Night-table Reading

Dean Stockwell (actor): The Bonfire of the Vanities, by Tom Wolfe (Bantam). "It really helps to pass the time waiting to go on-camera on location."

Camille Duvall (water-skier): Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All, by Allan Gurganus (Knopf). "It requires a lot of attention—perfect for flying."

Thomas L. Friedman (author-journalist): The Prince of Tides, by Pat Conroy (Bantam). "I savored every word, every sentence, every paragraph, every page, and every punctuation mark."

Amy Hempel (author): Lights Out in the Reptile House, by Jim Shepard (W. W. Norton). "The dark side of one of the funniest people I know."