Dua Lipa is opening Manifesto Library, a physical and permanent library for banned and censored books. It will open on June 27th inside the famed Livraria Lello bookshop in Porto, Portugal, in collaboration with the BABELL – City of Books Festival. Nearly 100 books will be present at Manifesto Library, including Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale” and Reginald Dwayne Betts’ “Felon,” alongside selected works from Salman Rushdie and Olga Tokarczuk.
In a press statement, Dua said:
“When I founded the Service95 Book Club, my ambition was for it to become a home for writers and readers, wherever they are and whatever their circumstances. Reading the world brings us closer — but sadly, not everyone is in favor of that. Here you will find one hundred books that ask questions, or have been questioned. Some have been banned by school districts for themes of race or sexuality. Others, written for LGBTQIA+ readers, have been restricted from display. In some cases, the author has paid for their words with their life.
This library is a shrine to books that have disappeared, to authors whose courage unmasks structures of power and control, and to readers who refuse to be told what book they are allowed to read. You are invited to visit and decide for yourself what belongs on these shelves. Because sometimes the most subversive thing you can do is read a book and then talk about it.”
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