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One fashion designer that everyone’s buzzing about is MIMI PLANGE. Following a successful spring collection, her recent Fall 2013 presentation, inspired by the Victorian era, was also well received. Mimi is the Ghanian born, California girl known for fusing African and American elements for a modern and timeless style that has garnered Mimi fans like Michelle Obama and other high profile clients around the world. Mimi is also well-traveled and a voracious reader, so I asked her to share her summer reading list.

The Pillow Book of Sei Shõnagon by Ivan Morris

Mimi: This Japanese classic is a detailed account of court life in eleventh-century Japan. Written at the height of Heian culture, The Pillow Book contains Sei Shõnagon’s elegant reflections on royal life, religious ceremonies, nature, poetry, the things she loved and the things she loathed.

Just Kids by Patti Smith

Mimi: Patti Smith gives us an unvarnished glimpse into her remarkable relationship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe in an honest and moving account of youth, friendship and love in 1960s New York.