London Fashion Week kicks off with a storm of runway shows and street style as we get a first look at the spring 2025 collections as well as what the world’s chicest people are wearing now. But perhaps a better question is, what are they listening to? With the rise of BookTok, celebrity book clubs, and the just-wrapped “Lit Girl Summer,” literature has never been more in vogue. From Instagram’s curated shelfies and posed paperbacks to inspiring this year’s Met Gala, the It Accessory these days is a great book. (Oh, and hats are big this season.)
But what about books about fashion? They are an art form all their own. Memoirs by designers and muses teem with juicy clothes and juicier gossip, passion for craftsmanship, eccentric influences, and lush settings. When the authors narrate, their performances make you sit up and pay attention. Nonfiction books about fashion are equal parts style and substance, from the rich history of textiles to smart ideas for disrupting the industry’s wasteful practices and prejudices, to the surprising psychology behind consumption and how to outsmart it. We surveyed the landscape and came up with 18 of the very best fashion memoirs and nonfiction to hear this Fashion Week. (And for the month’s It Books in every genre, check out our very own September issue, ) Enjoy! —Audible Editors and
The best fashion memoirs
The best fashion nonfiction