Every week, the New York Times Book Review interviews an author about his or her reading habits. The first question is often “What books are on your night stand?” – which usually elicits a long list of obscure titles – and the last question is sometimes the seemingly redundant “What do you plan to read next?” Yet no author has ever said “See above.” Invariably, the books on the to-be-read-next list are different from those sitting on the night stand. And I always wonder: So is the heavily piled night stand simply there to impress? And where are these next-in-line books being kept?
