DEBORAH LLOYD

The President and Creative Director of Kate Spade shares the books that shaped her life

Anne Of Green Gables by

L.M. Montgomery

I loved this story of an orphan girl being given opportunities and growing with them. A lot of my favourite books are about women and girls being given a chance to achieve. My grandmother gave this to me; she was a headmistress and was all about reading.

She was also the one who introduced me to making clothes for my dolls, so I have her to credit her with starting my career.

The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough

This Australian book is about a woman who disregards her daughter and goes on to have a relationship with the local priest; it’s fabulous. I love tales of strong women. Books have always meant escape for me. When I was growing up in the countryside just outside of Plymouth, I never quite fitted in. When I turned into a fashion girl, there wasn’t much there for me so I used books to escape and to imagine the life I could lead. It showed me there was a big bad world out there that I could be part of.

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

This was a real favourite when I was a teenager and a book I’ve come back to again and again. We lived in the south west, where the book is set, and we used to drive past the manor house where du Maurier wrote it and I would dream of living in a house like that. I love the story because nothing is as it seems; there is weirdness and strange things happen behind the scenes.