Hi PN
For LH flights, I have cargo pants and also a 'fishermans' type gilet that takes loads of stuff.
Also, ditch the paperbacks and get an eBook, you can take as many novels as you like in something about A5 size and thin.
PS: I am always careful to choose pants and gilet in colours that cannot be confused with 'Soldier of Fortune' readers apparel - nonetheless, I won't be winning Hard Amies's approval for being sartorially elegant.
Mind you, he was a bit of a pillock, as he insisted that people should wear lounge suits for long flights.
Also, I usually carry a shemagh if going to a hot sunny country, not the Gulf type with the skull cap (keffiyah) and the holder down (ercal), but the north african type that you can easily rig 'desert style' if you encounter very sunny or dusty conditions.
Useful things, shemaghs. I've even used mine as a tablecloth for a picnic.