Mimi Valdes of 'Vibe,' Tuning into Books

Mimi Valdes is editor-in-chief of Vibe magazine. Her summer reading picks are a mix of contemporary and classic fiction and nonfiction.

Mimi Valdes is editor-in-chief of Vibe magazine. She's also been a commentator for such TV specials as Black in the 80s, a series that explores the pop-culture contributions of African Americans during the Reagan years.

Mimi Valdes' List:

Bling, by Erica Kennedy. "Because I know that world so well, I found myself very frustrated, like, uh, that would never happen, or that's such an exaggeration."

Playing with Boys, by Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez. "Women, in general, you know, we put our all into our jobs... the book really kind of examines those types of issues. I just felt like, gosh, I'm not alone."

A Doll's House, by Henrik Ibsen. "I think [Nora] was probably one of the first female characters that I encountered in a book that was just so strong and so sure of who she was, and what she wanted, and what she would stand for, and what she wouldn't stand for."

Blink, by Malcolm Gladwell. "He talks about when Coca-Cola decided to change their formula up and introduce New Coke and how that was just such a bad idea. And it was something that the Coca-Cola Company obviously did not see coming. And, you know that's so crazy to think that a company would change a formula that has had so much success."