The Address Book: What Street Addresses Reveal about Identity, Race, Wealth and Power Hardcover – 2 April 2020

I endorse everything postive that other Reviewers have had to say - and also note how few niggles there were from others. I bought it for a friend, under the impresson that it was a humorous book about quaint addresses, then could not part with it for although there are a few bits and pieces like that, this book is a thorough and serious study , from a number of angles, of the importance of addresses. - and the often long-term, crippling consequences of not having one. Written by a literate and intelligent jourmalist, the book is readable and engrossing and I was very sorry when it ended. I would, if I could, take 1/.4 star away for the lack of photographs, which is not the author's fault of course. Photos would have enhanced an already high quality book. If the book runs into a second edition perhaps the author would consider adding something about pronunciation of addresses - eg local people undermining the intentions of housing committees by pronouncing pretentious or awkward street names as they see fit. East Ham has changed since I lived in London, I know, but I expect Baalam St. is still pronounced locally "Baa-lamb St." - I hope so, anyway.

One reviewer has commented that they had been hoping for a slightly more English-centred view with regard to historic English street names. This book is considerably more than that as it ranges across Kolkata, Pretoria, Haiti and Manhattan as well as Western Europe. The book’s sub-title is “What street addresses reveal about identity, race, wealth and power”. Rather than just focussing on the often entertaining reasons for individual street names, this is an occasionally challenging read about those issues through the prism of addresses.The author is an African American living in London and she brings a wide-ranging approach to the subject as the sub-title suggests. It is also very timely as there are several references to how address identification systems can be an important tool in tracking pandemics, especially in less developed parts of the world.Providing addresses to the poorest in society can be a massive benefit to them as it can be impossible to obtain a bank account or state benefits without that critical piece of information. The book illustrates how this can work in practice with examples from several countries. It also points out the corollary that having an address enables the state to locate and, critically, to tax people.A significant proportion of the book is concerned with how streets are named – and often renamed for assorted and contentious reasons. The examples range from Bobby Sands Street in Tehran to the American avenues named after Confederate Generals from the US Civil War. There is one chapter solely on South Africa which includes the struggles there over street names post-apartheid but it also ranges over other mainly race-related topics such as tussles over language and the composition of the Supreme Court which are arguably peripheral to the title of this book.Although, or perhaps because, the author lives in London she frequently points out how the British have behaved badly in various parts of the world. While occasionally criticising some other countries Britain does seem to be a particular target for her.Parts of the book are concerned with the various systemic approaches that can be employed including numbering, alphabetic, grid or block systems as well as arrangements based on particular geographic features. The final chapter is particularly concerned with the various online systems becoming available. The chapter is titled Conclusion although it ends by raising worthwhile questions rather than identifying likely outcomes.One minor observation. In her Introduction the author mentions how she nearly purchased a house in London but had been challenged by the fact that it was in Black Boy Lane in North London. Given her background she acknowledges that she had a nagging problem wondering if she could live in a street of that name. She goes on to discuss the possible background to the name, looking at how there have been black people in Britain since Shakespearean times and then even more so through the slave trade. For contrast I would note the Sussex village of Blackboys which probably derived its name from the workers in the charcoal industry in that region – but that is unlikely to have been relevant in Tottenham – and would not fit with the feeling, for me, of the agenda being followed in this book.Nonetheless this is a work of considerable scope and insight reflecting serious research effort. It is written in an accessible style and is well-leavened with interesting examples.

Well written and engaging read. Delves deeper into a topic I previously took at face value.

Cover was torn upon arrival

Nog what I expected