Pop star Dua Lipa has opened a permanent library dedicated to banned and censored books in Porto, expanding her long-running literary initiative beyond its online book club into a physical space that champions freedom of expression.
Known as the Manifesto Library, the collection is housed inside the historic Livraria Lello, one of Portugal’s best-known bookshops. It opened as part of the inaugural BABELL – City of Books international literary festival and brings together around 100 books that have been banned, censored or challenged for addressing issues such as race, sexuality, identity and political power.
The project was created through a partnership between Livraria Lello and Lipa’s Service95 Book Club, which the singer launched to encourage readers to discover global voices through monthly book recommendations and an accompanying podcast, where she interviews the authors.
In a statement announcing the opening, Lipa described the new space as “a dream partnership” that builds on the mission she has pursued since founding the book club.
“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,” she said. “Reading the world brings us closer – but sadly, not everyone is in favour of that.”
She added that the collection includes “one hundred books that ask questions, or have been questioned,” noting that “some districts have banned some 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.”
Lipa also described the Manifesto Library as “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.” Inviting visitors to explore the collection for themselves, she concluded: “Because sometimes the most subversive thing you can do is read a book and then talk about it.”
The library’s collection is organised around four themes: power, control, voice and memory. Featured titles include The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, Felon by Reginald Dwayne Betts, as well as works by Salman Rushdie and Olga Tokarczuk. Nearly all have faced censorship, restrictions or controversy in different parts of the world.
Francisca Pedro Pinto, Head of Brand at Livraria Lello, said the initiative reflects the bookshop’s long-standing belief in literature as a force for freedom.
“For 120 years, Livraria Lello has been built on a simple conviction: the book is a technology of freedom. The Manifesto Library grows from that belief,” she said. “Because what is at stake is not only the future of reading, but a society’s ability to imagine, interpret and build its own future.”
The opening marks another step in Dua Lipa’s growing involvement in the literary world. Beyond her music career, she has become an active advocate for reading through Service95 and is also set to curate the London Literature Festival at Southbank Centre later this year.
