From my very clever reading friend Lily Emerson-

10 books that have stayed with me or made a huge impact (in no particular order):

1. THE ROBBER BRIDE, Margaret Atwood.
I love all of her books but Xenia is the ultimate example of the skin-crawling horror women can inspire in one another.

2. FRANNY AND ZOOEY, J.D. Salinger.
Polish your shoes for the fat lady, damn it.

3. I CAPTURE THE CASTLE, Dodi Smith.
Smith might have been more famous for 101 Dalmatians but this book's literary-minded romantic heroine Cassandra is so compelling.

4. WISE CHILDREN, Angela Carter.
Not everything you read inspires you to change your signature perfume.

5. MATILDA, Roald Dahl.
Smart girls of the world unite and take over.

6. THE BLUEST EYE, Toni Morrison.
My first and favourite of her novels, language you can get totally lost in. Oprah's favourite author - and mine.

7. TRACKS, Louise Erdich.
Kind of witchy and brilliant.

8. THE SUN ALSO RISES, Ernest Hemingway.
This book is a master class in creating atmosphere and characters without being verbose.

9. LOLITA, Vladimir Nabokov.
This book is a master class in the luxury of verbosity. You can always count on a murderer for fancy prose style.

10. THE BELL JAR, Sylvia Plath.
The mad girl's love song.