Five Brilliant women reveal the novels which shaped them for #ThisBookClub Live

Last night at London’s Southbank Centre, the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction hosted a #ThisBookClub Live event in association with Grazia that saw apanel of high profile, creative and inspirational women come together to discuss the books, by women, that have had the most influence on their careers and lives.

From Nancy Mitford’s The Pursuit of Love to Lace by Shirley Conran and Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar, a fascinating wide-range of books were selected by the panellists, each talking personally and candidly about their choices.

From Harper Lee’s classic To Kill a Mockingbird, to a biography of Eleanor Marx see their choices below:

Polly Vernon

The Signature of All Things – Elizabeth Gilbert (2013 )

Lace – Shirley Conran (1983)

Shami Chakrabarti

To Kill a Mocking Bird – Harper Lee (1960)

Eleanor Marx – Rachel Holmes (2014)

Jane Shepherdson

The Bell Jar – Sylvia Plath (1963)

Union Street – Pat Barker (1982)

Grace Dent

Station Eleven – Emily St John Mandel (2014)

The Pursuit of Love – Nancy Mitford (1945)

 Aminatta Forna

All God’s Children Need Travelling Shoes – Maya Angelou (1986)

The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood (1985)