Some ages seem to exist for one reason only: to make us ask bigger questions. Thirty is one of them. A decade once associated with stability, but now increasingly defined by reinvention and uncertainty. Maybe that’s why, as it gets closer, even the most ordinary conversations begin to take on a different meaning.
Literature hasn’t stayed outside that conversation. Neither, recently, has Dua Lipa. While most people know her for her music, over the past few years the singer has quietly built another side of her career as a champion of reading through Service95, her editorial platform and book club.
It was there that she shared a selection of five books she considers especially meaningful for anyone approaching 30. A list that, rather than simply bringing together great books, feels like a conversation with the questions that often come with the beginning of a new decade.
Author: ANDREA BAU
Service95: More Than a Book Club
Although her career has been defined by music, Dua Lipa has spent the past few years building a space where culture holds just as much importance: her own editorial universe. Founded in 2022 and open to everyone, Service95 has become one of the Grammy winner’s most personal projects. More than a platform featuring recommendations, interviews and essays on topics ranging from travel and wellness to politics, art and literature, it serves as an extension of her curiosity and the conversations she wants to bring to the forefront.
It comes as no surprise, then, that books would play such an important role within the project. That’s how Service95 Book Club came to life: an initiative that introduces new reads every month while bringing readers into conversation with some of today’s most celebrated authors. Far from simply recommending books, the club aims to bring literature to new generations and remind us that reading can also be a way of better understanding the world around us.
A list that, rather than simply bringing together great titles, seems to engage with the questions that often accompany the beginning of a new decade.
Five Books for a New Decade, Courtesy of Dua Lipa
Perhaps the most interesting thing about Service95 is that it also works as a portrait of Dua Lipa herself. Just days before turning 30, the singer used her platform to gather the books she considers essential companions for this new chapter. A selection that reflects not only her interests as a reader, but also many of the conversations that naturally emerge as your twenties begin to come to an end: identity, love, loss, freedom and the possibility of reinventing yourself.
1. Small Things Like These, de Claire Keegan
Published in 2021, this short novel explores how even the smallest acts can become life-changing decisions. A story about empathy, courage and the importance of doing the right thing, even when it’s uncomfortable.
2. Giovanni’s Room, de James Baldwin
Widely regarded as one of James Baldwin’s defining works, the novel explores identity, desire and the search for authenticity. Decades after its publication, it remains a landmark of contemporary literature.
3. A Heart That Works, de Rob Delaney
In this memoir, Rob Delaney reflects on grief, love and loss with remarkable honesty. Rather than offering answers, the book opens a conversation about vulnerability and the ways we continue moving forward after a life-changing experience.
4. Dream Count, de Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s latest novel follows the lives of four women while exploring the choices, relationships and expectations that shape adulthood. A contemporary portrait of the many different lives one person might have imagined for herself.
5. Fearless and Free, de Josephine Baker
Josephine Baker’s memoir traces the life of an artist who constantly challenged the conventions of her time. A testament to independence, courage and the possibility of building a life rooted in authenticity.
The Age of New Questions
For a long time, turning 30 was seen as a kind of finish line. A time when life’s biggest decisions should already have been made, careers firmly established and the future, somehow, figured out. Today, however, that narrative feels increasingly out of step with the way we understand this stage of life. More than a decade of certainty, our thirties have become a space for building a stronger sense of who we are.
Thirty is no longer defined only by stability. It has also become a decade of change. A time marked by self-questioning, the possibility of starting over and the freedom to change direction. A time to reassess priorities and realize that many of the expectations we grew up with no longer belong to us.
Maybe that’s why this reading list has resonated with so many people. Because beyond the stories themselves, Dua Lipa’s five recommendations share the same underlying idea: growing up isn’t about having all the answers—it’s about learning to live with the questions.
