“Music journalist Lipshutz (It Starts with One) weaves together a vivid, sparkling ode to boy band One Direction […] The result is a comprehensive and thoroughly enjoyable music history.”
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Jason Lipshutz is the master of writing about some of the most popular bands of the last 25 years and showing you the real people behind the brands.”
—Steven Hyden, author of Is This It and There Was Nothing You Could Do

“Relive the magic of One Direction – the never-been-done, shouldn’t-have-worked, triumphant rock ‘n’ roll revivalists that became the Internet’s first boy band. Jason Lipshutz is your trusted guide, and A Whole Lotta History is a romp for those who remember the glory days of Twitter, Tumblr, skinny jeans (a pre-Gucci Harry Styles, of course) and Obama-era optimism. Lipshutz’s dedication to accuracy is matched only by his deeply considered evaluation of 1D’s music – a generosity rarely afforded such titans of pop music, despite their zeitgeist-shifting half-decade. You’ll come for the nostalgia. You’ll stay for an inside look at some of the English-Irish boy band’s biggest hits.”
—Maria Sherman, author of Larger Than Life: A History of Boy Bands from NKOTB to BTS

“An authoritative history of one of the 21st century’s defining pop acts. Lipshutz chronicles One Direction’s one-in-a-million rise to stardom while giving nuance and humanity to Zayn, Louis, Harry, Niall, and Liam. Whether you’re a casual fan looking for a trip down memory lane or a day-one obsessive who remembers every obscure Twitter catchphrase, you’re sure to learn something new.”
—Chris Payne, author of Where Are Your Boys Tonight?: The Oral History of Emo’s Mainstream Explosion, 1999-2008

"For superfans and the 1D-curious alike, A Whole Lotta History captures the hijinks, savvy strategy and shrieking adoration behind the social media era's defining band. I'd make a shrine to this book on the side of the 101 any day."
—Nora Princiotti, host of Every Single Album and We’re Obsessed for The Ringer and author of Hit Girls

"Few men can gracefully enter, chronicle or even begin to understand the One Direction universe, and thankfully Jason Lipshutz is one of them. A Whole Lotta History is thoughtful, sweet and brilliant in its meticulous detailing of not only what 1D did as a group (and on their own) but what they meant to so many die-hard fans. This book felt like a time capsule of the 2010s, not just for those immersed in their love for one of the best boy bands to ever exist but for a strange and quickly bygone period of pop culture, where streaming and social media became increasingly important to the industry machine. Incredibly, that period allowed a ramshackle group of charming, weird, uncoordinated teens from the UK to make One Direction and, now, for someone as sharp as Jason to take their careers as seriously as every screaming girl at one of their shows."
—Brittany Spanos, Pop Music Journalist