DUA LIPA’S SERVICE95 BOOK CLUB ANNOUNCES DETAILS ON MARCH’S MONTHLY READ: “THERE THERE” BY TOMMY ORANGE

Dua Lipa’s Service95 Book Club shares details about March’s Monthly Read: 

There There by Tommy Orange. The Service95 Book Club will provide exclusive content from Dua and Tommy throughout the month on service95.com and across socials.

On There There, Dua says, “Tommy starts with a brief but sharp history lesson in the prologue of There There, dispelling 400 years of slurs and stereotypes against Native people in 10 fiery pages – almost too painful to bear, but essential to start his story. If you are expecting beads and fry bread, you’ve come to the wrong book. Orange’s characters – 12 ‘Urban Indians’ living modern lives in American cities – are single parents, filmmakers, recovering addicts, survivors of sexual violence and kids searching for meaning. In short: life in all its complexity.”

Dua continues, “The connections between the cast reveal themselves bit by bit as events spiral towards a violent and horrific crescendo in the Big Oakland Powwow – an occasion that holds a desperate significance for each of them. Among the tragedy that is foreshadowed throughout, there is also redemption and humanity. It’s a stunning story, and I can’t wait to hear what you think of it.”

In an interview between Dua and Tommy, which is out today, they discuss the brutal treatment of Native people, and the parallels between the American Indian Movement’s occupation of Alcatraz in 1969 and the more recent demonstrations at Standing Rock in North Dakota. Tommy also reveals how he poured himself into his characters and expands upon the novel’s tragic ending. Watch the interview here.

In addition, readers can learn more about the novel’s influences through Tommy’s reading list and playlist that he has shared exclusively with the Service95 Book Club. Tommy has also performed a reading of an excerpt from the book’s prologue, which is available here. Lastly, to round off this month’s exclusive content, Service95 has collated a photo essay on Alcatraz that readers can check out here.

Dua’s Service95 Book Club is the latest offering from her Service95 platform, which consists of the At Your Service podcast and the flagship Service95 newsletter. Service95 has been praised by The Guardian as “some of the most thought-provoking short-form cultural writing you can find,” and the podcast has been lauded by The Sunday Times, Vogue and Vulture. In addition, Spotify named it one of the Best Podcasts of 2022, and praised Dua as “an incredibly thoughtful interviewer with a genuine interest in people, social movements, and the arts.” 

You can follow Service95 on socials and YouTube to get the latest, and subscribe to the newsletter here to stay in the loop on upcoming monthly reads.