Reading has always been hot and sexy, but it seems like, as of late, it's also a fixture in fashion—thank god! We love literacy! We're talking about reading when it goes beyond being performative and is solely about education and self-preservation. Is there anything chicer than that?
The past two years have marked the rise of the literary it girl, with supermodel Kaia Gerber starting her book club, Library Science, to platform new, overlooked, and underrepresented voices in literature. Gerber is frequently seen at exciting runway shows or strutting the streets of New York City with a book in hand, the most powerful of all accessories, and often wearing literary merchandise (graphic tees, bookstore totes, etc.) to match. She even frequently collaborates with fashion brand Dôen to create pieces made especially for reading that will have anyone feeling literary chic.
With summer in full swing and our love for our literary fashion girls at an all-time high, we tapped six of our favorite fashion girls about the books they're packing for their summer travels.
Lucy Rae McFadin
The Destination: "I was in Puglia at the beginning of June, and I am going back to Europe next week with my sister. We are going all over Italy, Croatia, and Montenegro. It will be our first trip together as adults, which I am super excited about."
The Book: "I have been reading I Regret Almost Everything by Keith McNally for longer than I would like to admit. I absolutely love the book, but am a ridiculously slow reader. Thankfully, I am two chapters short of finishing and plan to pick up Julia Fox's memoir Down the Drain next.
The Reasoning: "My dad got me Keith McNally's book. Balthazar has been a home to many family dinners since before my sister and I even moved to New York City. We love the food and even more so, the atmosphere. I also am particularly drawn to memoirs. I find I learn the most through hearing about others' lived experiences, and Keith's brutal honesty and dry humor were especially captivating."
Susie Lola Garvie
The Destination: "I’ll be going to Marseille with family later in the summer for a poolside relaxing trip!"
The Book: "Pussy: A Reclamation by Regena Thomashauer. I read this about five years ago in my early 20s, and it genuinely changed my life. It’s an incredible book that I believe all females should read. It’s insanely empowering, uncomfortable in some moments in the best way, and a book I’m trying to turn back to every few years as a refresher."
The Reasoning: "I love to read self-help books, and this is one of two books focused around womanhood that I’ve really connected with, the other being Women Who Run With The Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés. Both books felt so sacred to me when I first read them and I like the idea of rereading them now a few years on, as I’ve gotten older and my relationship with myself and the world has developed, to see if the points I underlined all those years ago still resonate and if there’s any new perspectives."
Tina Zhang
Tina ZhangThe Destination: "I just got back from LA and am going to be in Paris, London, and the South of France in August."
The Book: "I finished Eve Babitz's Sex and Rage while in LA and am about halfway through Wuthering Heights, so that will be coming with me to the UK and France."
The Reasoning: "I’ve been really into pre-gaming my vacations by reading novels based on my next destination. I started it last year when I happened to read Patti Smith’s Devotion before going to Paris, and it made the anticipation of sitting at a Parisian cafe so much sweeter. A few months ago I picked up Deborah Levy’s The Cost of Living during a trip to London, and will be returning to the city with Wuthering Heights. I can’t say it’s a particularly relaxing read, but I am looking forward to being haunted by gothic literature while in London."
Johanna Lager
The Destination: "I’ve just spent the past week in the Stockholm archipelago, which is one of my favorite places in the world. Next I’m heading to the south of France and Sardinia with some friends. They’re completely different trips, which I love."
The Book: "I’m currently reading My Friends by Fredrik Backman, and it somehow feels like the perfect book for the archipelago. I actually have a weird habit of matching my books to wherever I am. Calm places make me want slower, more thoughtful stories, while airports make me want something I physically can’t put down (read: murder) to make the flights feel shorter. So for the flights, I’ve packed Family of Liars by E. Lockhart."
The Reasoning: "I’m only a few chapters in, but I’m already hooked. Fredrik Backman has this way of making you care about people almost instantly, even when nothing particularly dramatic is happening. That’s probably my favorite kind of book."
Cassie Jekanoski
Cassie JekanoskiThe Destination: "This summer, I’ve gone to Paris for work, back to Boston to see family, and headed to Ecuador in August to see family again."
The Book: "Currently I’m reading Sunburn by Chloe Michelle Howarth."
The Reasoning: "I chose this book because my favorite book is A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara, which happens to be a friend of mine's favorite book so she recommended Sunburn. She mentioned that Sunburn is a close second to A Little Life, so I'm excited and a bit nervous to get through it. So far it's been a bit of a slow start, but the imagery is unmatched. You can really sense everything that the main character is feeling and going through."
Tessa Tran
Tessa TranThe Destination: "I just came back from Kauai a few days ago. My family has a home on the island. It’s always nice to unwind and cook with the family for a few days. So far this year I’ve been to India twice, Paris twice, Amsterdam, Tenerife, and Tokyo."
The Book: "On my last trip to Kauai, I picked up Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In again. When I’m on long trips, I also pack a few pocket books by Thich Nhat Han. How to Love, How to Fight, How to Relax, How to Focus… I choose whichever titles resonate with me most in the moment before I leave. I reread them countless times and you’ll always find two of the series in my carry-on."
The Reasoning: "I noticed Lean In sitting on my nightstand and thought it would be interesting to revisit it through a different lens, more than a decade later and at a very different point in my career. I first read it when it was published in 2013, and it was interesting to see which ideas still resonated, which felt dated, and how much my own perspective has evolved since then. And Thicht Nhat Han's books are simple and are a thoughtful reminder to be present."
