Chic Reads: Summer Book List

I returned to Hong Kong from New York with these books that I purchased at Barney's and favorite bookstore Rizzoli.

1. Yves Saint Laurent. Icons of Fashion Design. This is a book dedicated to the first 25 years of the house of Saint Laurent (1962-1988) and it is rich with wonderful images from renown photographers. Most of the photographs are from fashion editorials from different magazines. There are also runway shots and sketches by the designer.

2. Classy by Derek Blasberg. I picked up this book because it seemed like fun. Kind of like a modern Emily Post book of manners guide with a fab-bitchy gay twist. I have yet to sit down and read it but having flicked through the pages casually, I've found really funny bits.

3. I Heart Your Style. How to define and refine your style by Amanda Brooks. This would please a lot of fashion people as it touches all sorts of fashion styles and icons - from the classic Americans to bohemians to jet set to rock and rollers. There's lots of great photos too of every fashion icon imaginable.

I got my iPad while I was in New York and have been in love with the iBooks and Kindle applications. Above is my iBooks bookshelf which is really quite amazing.

I read this book on the flight to and from Toronto via New York. It's an easy read about a promising literary agent turned crackhead. There are a lot of sad and depressing turns as he struggles with his addiction. It's actually quite good and the author is quite good looking too.

Who knew that nobody wanted to touch Breakfast at TIffany's, not even its star Audrey Hepburn. This book is brimming with lots of juicy details above the film, Truman Capote, the actors and everyone involved in the making of the film. There's bits on Edith Head being disappointed at not being able to work on the major costumes as Hepburn wanted to wear Givenchy, which, in Head's opinion, was ridiculous because Holly Golightly was a call girl and could not afford French couture! And there's also the story about how Moon River was almost cut from the movie. Can you imagine!

A light summer read which I have just started reading. This is my treadmill read.

I had great hopes for this book as I thoroughly enjoyed Danielle Ganek's first book, Lulu Meets God And Doubts Him. The Summer We Read Gatsby is a beach read. That's that.

I am a huge fan of House & Garden and was saddened when Conde Nast folded the magazine. It's editor Dominique Browning tells of the days when the magazine she help buid was shut down and how she dealt with unemployment.