This title is so subjective, I hardly know where to start. Is it supposed to call for contemporary bedside books only, by pop authors such as Grisham or Cornwell, whose exciting scenarios will keep you awake. Or should it be concocted as a best-of-all-times list, to include the classics by Shakespeare and Hemingway?

What the hell. Considering that I'm a very old traditionalist, I'll just list my own 25 favorite bedside companions. Incidentally, because of fading eyesight, I do all of my night time in-bed reading of books on tape. I advise subscribing to the service for anyone, old or young, instead of the awful TV programming that bores in the night.

1. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote: Fascinating true story of murder and the author's attempt to understand the murderers.
2. The Right Stuff by Tomas Wolfe: The great guys who conquered the skies.
3. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky: Did I just add this heavy morality tale to make me seem more erudite?
4. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain: Closely rivaled by Tom Sawyer; both delightful tales of childhood.
5. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley: Unfortunately, his cynical look at the future has proven to be too true.
6. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck: The hard-scrabble life of the Okies shouldn't ever be forgotten.
7. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut: The time-warp bouncing back and forth from WWII is fascinatingly tragic.
8. Ulysses by James Joyce: This was required reading in grad school. I hated it then, but just now am starting to understand.
9. The Holy Bible by various writers: The Gideon guys had a great idea to put this book in sleazy motel rooms.
10. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell: Frankly, Scarlett, you're the most intriguing bitchy heroine in fiction.
11. The Greatest Generation by Stephen Ambrose: The story of WWII from the view of the guys who fought it.
12. Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens: Maybe I like this book so much because the Broadway show is my absolute favorite.
13. Animal Farm by George Orwell: A parody on the human condition that seems truer every time I read (hear) it.
14. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee: The loving relationship of Atticus to Scout is always good for a night time teardrop.
15. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll: Is even more fun to read when you get to be an old, old adult.
16. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller: This utter nonsense of a book takes me back to my own utter nonsense service in WWII.
17. Moby Dick by Herman Melville: "Oh, ye whale" of a book. Required in school, but reads better and better now.
18. Inherit the Wind by Jerome Lawrence & Robert E. Lee: A wonderful true tale, and made into a classic Tracy-March movie.
19. The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck: The ultimate story of survival against all odds. Also a great Muni movie.
20. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo: Maybe I was influenced too much by "Les Mis", but the book is actually much better.
21. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens: Another required high school book, but still a memorable experience.
22. A Christmas Carol by the same guy: Could be I read it because I look forward to seeing TV versions every December.
23. Roots by Alex Haley: It brings a long overdue dignity to the struggle from slavery to freedom.
24. Hamlet by William Shakespeare: The all-time classic of love and death that reads like a new book whenever I hear it.
25. The Guns of August by Barbara Tuchman: Brilliant study of the sheer stupidity of WWI as a prelude to WWII's stupidity.

Learn more about this author, Ted Sherman.
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