Night-Table Reading

Audra McDonald

singer-actress, Broadway's Marie Christine

The Feast of All Saints, by Anne Rice

(Ballantine). "I just returned from New Orleans, and I've become obsessed with the town."

Jerry Hadley

tenor, The Great Gatsby

Shadow, by Bob Woodward (Simon & Schuster).

"A study of the impact of Watergate on the modern American president— and how this has wrought a harvest of cynicism and distrust among the electorate."

Rory Kennedy

producer-director, HBO's documentary American Hollow

Desert Queen, by Janet Wallach (Anchor).

"While most have heard of Lawrence of Arabia, Gertrude Bell's little-known contributions played a crucial role in creating the modern Middle East.

Yet another woman who has been overlooked by history."

Faith Stewart-Gordon

author, The Russian Tea Room: A Love Story

Virginia Woolf, by Hermione Lee (Vintage).

"This in-depth biography is fascinating on two levels: it reads like a novel and reveals the creative processes that made Virginia Woolf one of the most innovative writers of the 20th century."