PORTO — Dua Lipa, the British-Albanian pop star, has opened a permanent library dedicated to banned and censored books inside Livraria Lello, one of Portugal's most famous bookshops. The Manifesto Library, launched as part of the BABELL – City of Books festival, houses nearly 100 titles that have faced suppression for their themes of race, sexuality, or political dissent.
In a statement, Lipa described the project as a "dream partnership" that builds on her Service95 Book Club, which she founded to connect readers with authors. "Reading the world brings us closer — but sadly, not everyone is in favour of that," she said. "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."
A Library of Resistance
The collection is organized around four themes: power, control, voice, and memory. It includes Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, Reginald Dwayne Betts' Felon, and selected works by Salman Rushdie and Nobel laureate Olga Tokarczuk. Each book, Lipa said, "has been questioned" or "disappeared" in some context, making the library "a shrine to books that have disappeared, to authors whose courage unmasks structures of power and control."
Livraria Lello, a neo-Gothic landmark in Porto that attracts tourists from across Europe, has long positioned itself as a defender of intellectual freedom. Francisca Pedro Pinto, the bookshop's Head of Brand, said: "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. 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 library is housed in the bookshop's new cultural auditorium, a space designed for events and exhibitions. It will remain open permanently, offering visitors a chance to browse and read titles that have been restricted in various countries, from the United States to parts of Europe and beyond.
Lipa's involvement comes amid a busy year for the singer, who recently released a live album, saw her debut album reach 450 weeks on the UK charts, and married actor Callum Turner. But the Manifesto Library marks a more deliberate cultural intervention, one that aligns with her broader advocacy for free expression and social justice.
Portugal has seen a surge in cultural tourism, with Porto's historic bookshops and libraries drawing visitors from across the continent. The country's ultra-wealthy population has grown significantly in recent years, but the Manifesto Library aims to serve a different audience: readers who value intellectual freedom over luxury. The project also resonates with ongoing debates in Europe about censorship, particularly in countries like Hungary and Poland, where governments have targeted LGBTQIA+ content and academic freedom.
Lipa urged visitors to "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." The library is free to enter with a ticket to Livraria Lello, which itself has become a pilgrimage site for book lovers worldwide.
