I picked up this urban-planning adjacent book at the suggestion of multiple readers who knew of my obsession with urban planning. Mask's thorough exploration of the hidden history and meanings of the street address take her all the way from ancient Rome to contemporary U.S. cities. I found this fascinating, illuminating, highly relevant, and surprisingly timely: a recurring theme in the book is the role of street addresses in identifying and stopping epidemics.

This is one of the most fascinating books I’ve read in a long time. The importance of an address and the amount of effort that goes into getting one is amazing. It seems so trivial in the developed world or in an urban setting. But in so many parts of the world, it could be a means to a better life elsewhere.
I look forward to reading more from this author.

This book is great and I think everyone needs to read it. A lot of great history conveyed through wonderful writing. For sure recommending.

This book is about the impact of addresses (or lack there of) on communities. The author addresses race, wealth, poverty, and politics, while sharing narratives about folks who have impacted the development of addresses or who are trying to making social change currently. It is missing some analysis, and recommendations about “what next”, but it is still an interesting read because of the stories throughout. I would recommend it to someone who wants to learn the history of addresses, but would shy away from praising it for those who are craving in-depth analysis.

“The Address Book: What Street Addresses Reveal About Identity, Race, Wealth, and Power” by Deirdre Mask | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ •

This book was absolutely fascinating. The subtitle gives you a good idea of the contents, but doesn’t let you know how fun it is to read. Deirdre Mask’s writing style is incredibly approachable as she explains the history and implications of addressing around the world. She couples anecdotes with thoroughly researched analysis. I learned so much from this book and found myself sad it was over because it sort of felt like sitting at a bar with a captivating friend who knows a ton and can tell engaging stories for hours with both humor and substance. Definitely recommend!

Street addresses are something most of us take for granted in this digital age, even though most forms still ask us where we live. For many, street addresses are a privilege. They are markers of wealth and poverty. They are also the first thing employers learn about a job candidate. Before reading The Address Book, I had little considered the significance of my street address. I knew that gentrification was a problem in Cleveland and Philadelphia (especially West Philly) but it never occurred to me that employers might discriminate against their employees based on their street addresses or that people without street addresses might not be able to apply for a job. I didn’t know that there are regions of the United States where homeowners don’t have addresses.

In The Address Book: What Street Addresses Reveal About Identity, Race, Wealth, and Power, Deirdre Mask reveals how important street addresses are to our personal, social, and legal identities. Beginning in West Virginia, where hundreds of residents refuse to adopt a street address, Mask explores the advantages and disadvantages of having a legal and traceable address. If some West Virginians fear the interference of the government in their neighborhoods, Indians living in the slums of Kolkota wish they had traceable addresses so that they could obtain government-issued IDs and register for social services. And then there’s the question of street names. What should communities do about streets named after Nazis or Confederate leaders? How do street names figure in the social visions of revolutionaries and totalitarian regimes?

For the past year, I have been living in Geneva, Switzerland, where streets are named after famous figures of Swiss history. There are streets named after Protestant Reformers, scientists, doctors, comic artists, and past mayors. In Paris, where the majority of streets are named after men, feminist activists have informally renamed street signs to better reflect the diversity of French history; the names of famous French women are scribbled over the official names.

Each chapter in The Address Book explores a different region of the world – Haiti, India, West Virginia, South Africa, Paris, Philadelphia, New York, Vienna, Germany, Japan, and Iran. Through a series of stories, Mask shows how street addresses and layout reflect the political concerns of those respective regions. She interviews activists who favor the changing of street names or work to give addresses to the homeless. Her writing is dynamic and personal. Mask does not hesitate to share her own personal views on a particular question, but only after she has given voice to the people directly involved in the politics of street addresses.

I flew through this book in a few sittings. If you are looking for a book that opens your eyes to the way people live around the world and has a strong voice, look no further than The Address Book. My only criticism is that chapters on a certain region were not always dedicated to that region. Paris, for example, features in several chapters despite those sections being about other nations. Perhaps, there should have been an earlier chapter dedicated to the influence of Paris on street addresses around the world.

The Address Book came out on April 14, but I read a review copy requested from NetGalley.

My review appeared on my blog: https://litexplore.com/2020/04/24/review-of-the-address-book-by-deirdre-mask-nonfiction/

For as long as I can remember I have always been curious on the origin of street names and address. In this eye-opening book, Mask dives deep into the history of this topic: from the lack of addresses in India to why streets in U.S. named for Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) are usually found in poverty-stricken urban areas. I have less than 75 pages to go and I’m blown away by the history lesson, Mask, is giving me. Priceless!⁣
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Thank you, @StMartinsPress for gifting me this gem. I highly recommend you check this book out.⁣ ⁣

A book about addresses sounds boring and pointless, but this is not the case with The Address Book. There is quite a bit that goes into the creation of an address, especially in areas of high influence and visibility. This book is a collection of long form essays about various address related issues and culture. Obviously, some of these essays are better than others, but the entire collection works to push the primary objective of the book forward. I found the Hollywood, FL and Manhattan chapters to be the most interesting.

Wow!! I loved this book. Now everyone knows that I loooove a book with a N.C. connection. Well not only is the author from N.C., she grew up one street over from the house I live in!! I learned that while reading the book, as she talks about her previous addresses. How cool??

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Nostalgia aside, this book is fantastic! Deirdre Mask has done a ton of research and it shows. However, it’s not at all a laborious read. She has taken what she’s learned and presented it in a series of stories (because stories are so powerful!) that span continents, yet it’s all connected. I’ll never look at a house or street number or name the same way again.

***********************************The topic might seem unimportant or trivial at best, but nothing could be further from the truth. In this country (and all others) everything is political, everything is about power and everything leads to or from money - the lack thereof or the abundance of it. I highly recommend this book!! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

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Thank you so much @netgalley for allowing me to read this advanced readers copy! This book is already for sale so you don’t have to wait to get your hands on it so RUN AND ORDER IT NOW! @stmartinspress #Netgalley

I grew up on a street named after a city mover and shaker from the late 1800's and it was a great accomplishment for me to learn to spell it. Looking back at the old neighborhood addresses only two streets were named and the rest were numbers. Living on one of the two named streets gave you your place above all of the rest. It never occurred to me as a child that the rest of the world didn't have any kind of address at all. Now that I was enjoyed this wonderfully written book, I will never see addresses the same way.
Through history, politics, race and economics, the reader is taken on a tour of the world and of history and I couldn't put it down. This is one of those special books that I want to share with everyone. Some will be getting a copy as a birthday gift and others for a holiday. There is something for everybody within its pages.
My thanks to the publisher St. Martin's and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

The Address Book
What Street Addresses Reveal About Identity, Race, Wealth, and Power
by Deirdre Mask
St. Martin's Press
You Like Them
History | Nonfiction (Adult)
Pub Date 14 Apr 2020 | Archive Date 28 Apr 2020

Love this nonfiction book on how addresses reveal so much about identity, race, wealth and power.
Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing the ARC for this book. I will recommend this to our library patrons who like nonfiction.

Every once in a while I enjoy reading a non-fiction book about a very obscure or specific topic, such as a history of salt, what to pack for Mars, traffic, America in the summer of 1927, and so on. Now I can (happily) add The Address Book by Deirdre Mask to that list.

We here in Chicago take addresses and street names for granted, but Ms. Mask shows us that this isn’t always so readily available and evident, even here in some parts of the US. And what seems logical and normal to us is viewed differently in other cultures, such as the naming of blocks as opposed to streets in Japan, or assigning house numbers by date as opposed to sequentially. Not having an address prevents the homeless from improving their situation, and the un-addressed slums of Kolkata also conspire to keep the poor out of sight.

There’s also a good bit of history here, from the fact that ancient Rome didn’t use house numbers, to the introduction of numbers in Vienna and the rest of the Austrian-Hungarian empire. Most revolutions change the street names early on to start changing the local culture, something the Nazis were quick to discover. I also learned that house numbers weren’t initially used to help you find locations, instead they were to help the government find you for taxation, conscription, etc.

So Ms. Mask takes on a journey which touches on race, history, culture, wealth, and identity. And I will never look at my sequential house number on a neutrally-named street the same way again.

I requested and received a free advanced electronic copy from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley. Thank you!

The Address Book addresses why addresses are important.

So why are addresses important?
“Addresses are one of the cheapest ways to lift people out of poverty, facilitating access to credit, voting rights, and worldwide markets.”

And, “most households in the world don’t have street addresses.” Before Americans feel too superior, “parts of the rural United States don’t have street addresses either.” Even, arguably, our most advanced city takes its street names (perhaps a bit too) seriously. “In some years, more than 40 percent of all local laws passed by the New York City Council have been street name changes”

Split into five broad areas, The Address Book explores how street addresses have improved people’s lives. And what governments, non-profits, and for-profit companies are doing right now to solve the naming issue. And it is a major issue. Giving people addresses has even stopped pandemics in the past.

The book is impeccably researched with extensive notes at the end. The author describes the scenes of her worldwide travel to illustrate the subject well. But we are discussing addresses, so occasionally the pacing slows to the level of a textbook. If you are interested in how people are working hard to use unusual methods to pull people out of poverty, this book is highly recommended. For the rest of us general non-fiction readers, 3 stars.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

I very much appreciate the advance read in exchange for an honest review. I'm sorry to say that, while well-written, this book wasn't my taste, but I wish the author and publisher great success.

This is a fascinating look at all things addresses: street names, house numbers, oh yeah, and class, race, identity, politics, and more. This is perfect for people who like narrative histories, who like to take deep dives into obscure or seemingly unimportant subjects, or who just want a very good read.

I was hooked from the get-go. I can honestly say that I have taken street addresses for granted my whole life. I enjoyed that while the author focused on the seemingly narrow subject of street addresses, she managed to explore that topic on a global level.

Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for providing me with this free ARC. This is my honest review.

What a fascinating book. I’ll be perfectly frank, I don’t think I have ever given much thought to street address - the suburban area that I grew up in was named after banking terms, so that was interesting, but everywhere else I’ve lived it has always been random. The author does a great job of taking the reader through the history of why we have street names & numbers, some unusual things that have happened to an otherwise orderly system over the years (I’m looking at you NYC & your “vanity” addresses). From there the discussion moves to why certain addresses are more valuable than others and discusses throughout the many challenges one faces when they don’t have an address (whether because of homelessness or just living in a remote area). The book finishes with a glimpse into the future - and some technology that may change how we think about addresses.

This is a fantastic & engaging read - particularly if you want to do a deep dive into a nuanced topic. I think it is a worthy topic from a historical perspective as well as a social justice one.

Have you ever where and how your street got it’s given name or are you looking for an interesting read about a not so much talked about subject? If so this book is for you. I can fully and truly say that I was immediately fascinated by this book within the first few pages. Not only does it go in detail about how are street names compromised and made up by presidential names and state flowers but there’s whole another side to street names including several diversity factors , postal unions across the globe and how addressing coordinators work. I’m not sure if because of my job of working in the postal industry that this has helped me enjoy this book a little bit or if it was the basis of the book alone that captured my imagination and made me want to know more.
One piece of the book that I enjoyed was how the author came up with the idea to write the book. After reading this book (which was extremely fast) I was excitedly sharing a bunch of factoids with my customers, co workers and family. I was gifted this book by net galley and the publisher for review purposes.

Compelling Yet Not Complete. Mask tells some excellent stories about various issues early in the development of various features and issues with an address, and does so in a way that is very easy to read. That noted, at times (such as during the discussion of how house numbers came to be) she outright admits that several things "seemingly happened at once" and that she went with the story she prefers herself - as opposed to what actually happened first, presumably. It was these little tidbits here and there that were just enough to warrant removing a star - still a compelling and interesting book, but not as factually accurate as it arguably could have been. Still good enough for a general overview of the subject, but I'm not sure I'd want to go up against a Postmaster General in address trivia based on just reading this book. Still, as noted, a very easy and very informative read and thus very much recommended.

I received an advanced reader copy of 'The Address Book' off Netgalley and I was thrilled. This book had the potential to be very interesting or very, very boring. I am SO pleased to say that this book turned out to be the former!

I found myself not wanting to put this book down because it was so much more than I expected. The writing was so informative, friendly and interesting that I found myself drawn to read more whenever I had a free moment. Not only does the book discuss the physical address but discusses the brain, history, homelessness, revolutions, and more! The writing felt well researched and the notes at the back of the book backs this up, but I also enjoyed the authors personal experiences added in.

I found myself looking at street signs while driving around my local area and pondering the points of the book. That clearly means the subject took a hold in my brain. I enjoyed this so much that I'm preordering it to have in my personal library. There aren't many nonfiction books I want to reread but I'm happy to say this is one of them. I look forward to whatever Deirdre Mask writes next.