In practice, reading in bed was probably less dangerous than public reproach suggested. Of the 29,069 fires recorded in London from 1833 to 1866, only 34 were attributed to reading in bed.

Some books should be read in bed -- Proust, for example, who seems to have spent most of his adult life writing in bed, ... On Reading in Bed. Updated: Jul. 10, 2010, 3:58 p.m.

Dear Eric: My husband suffers from frequent insomnia. When he has trouble sleeping, he spends a while (sometimes several hours) reading in bed. He uses a small flashlight, but it’s still bright ...