British musician Laurel is a lover of words. In addition to her music, Laurel is a writer, a poet and an avid reader. A lover of books is all shapes and sizes, she definitely has more than a few favourites.

She connects with Truman Capote's Holly Golightly on a deep level but her favourite writer is Virgina Woolf. She's currently Another Country by James Baldwin but the one she just finished up is Catcher in the Rye.

Laurel starting playing gigs when she was barely a teenager and she was signed to universal at the tender age of 17. Her debut album Dogviolet is one self recorded, produced, and mixed all herself. Now, a few years on she's still dealing with the same big issues – love, loss and survival.

Following on from the release of her most recent EP Petrol Bloom, we connected with Laurel to talk about favourite summer reads. Literary masterpieces have always served as a source inspiration her music and her poetry. Here, she shares with us her all time favourites.

I am currently reading …

Another Country - James Baldwin.

My favourite book …

White Teeth - Zadie Smith.

My actual favourite book …

Kids - Patti Smith.

My childhood favourite book …

Winnie the Pooh.

The character I most identify with is …

Holly Golightly / Lula Mae.

The last book I read …

The Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger.

The book I would give as a gift is …

The Artist’s Way - Julia Cameron.

My favourite writer is…

Virginia Woolf  because… her writing is so poetic, totally lost in a world of its own.

The book everyone should read at least once is …

Breakfast at Tiffany’s - Truman Capote.

The follow up to her debut album, Laurel's newest EP Petrol Bloom is out now. Watch the music video for Petrol Bloom on YouTube or stream Petrol Bloom on most services.