Every so often, I review books related to postcards or postal stuff in general on this blog, which is a fact that rapidly everyone in my life is getting to learn! Recently a friend stumbled across an older book they thought I’d surely be amused by: Martin Parr's Boring Postcards USA. I definitely enjoyed looking through it, so here I am to tell the rest of you about it! I’m pretty certain it’s out of print, but there are plenty of copies out there on the second-hand market. I’ve even found a version that seems to have been released in Germany, as Langweilige Postkarten!
Despite the title being “Boring Postcards”, I actually thought when reading it that there were definitely cards that postcrossers I’ve corresponded with would have loved to receive: advertising postcards showing tools, for example! Most of the postcards are super, super mundane: parking lots and highways and hotel rooms… but I can imagine people sending them all the same to show where they’ve actually been, or as a novelty, or for people for whom the landscapes are unfamiliar.
I’ll share a couple of the images with you all, to give you some examples, though the quality of the images won’t be great! I won’t share too many, as the images are pretty much all there is to it, except for some captions… but it’ll give you an idea!
I think the postcards might seem boring on the surface, but there’s definitely an attraction in imagining who might send or receive these, and I’d bet there are collectors who’d love some of these. Do you have any “boring postcards” like these of your own to send?
As ever, I’m eager to hear suggestions for other post-related books to read and review, especially ones which specifically focus on postcards! The best place to let me know is via the forum thread; if you haven’t posted in the forum before, you might need to browse a little bit first to open up all the areas of the forum.
69 comments so far
Oh, wow! I have received a stash of “boring” postcards from a friend who was moving to a retirement home, so she needed to destash stuff. The postcards were lobbies, rooms, gardens of hotels and motels in America. Fun stuff!
Perhaps these are of interest to collectors! It might be worth mentioning that in the profile.
Some boring postcards are a canvas for me to alter with collage or drawings. Every postcard is interesting in some way!
Thank you for this blog and the forum promo.
:)
I am a Martin Parr photography fan, sadly he passed away in dec 2025 but leaving a lot of beauty photo's and collectable postcards.
I am fascinated by these “boring” postcards. I traded a few “boring postcards” and we both enjoyed it. I like thinking about who made it and what was on their mind regarding the slice of scenery/a room/a building/a generic deer or what have you when they took the photo. I used to grab up such cards when I was a kid and I still have a few of old motel rooms and front lobbies, pictures of a vacant beach with a badminton court on it, an empty highway, a bad drawing of a nondescript bird on a cart in the snow. I love an artistic/dramatic/clever/educational/beautiful card as much as anyone but these somewhat forlorn and dull cards are in a class all their own. And yeah, they can also be a good canvas for stickers and other commentary.
These are the kinds of postcards I love. Very cool!
I am definitely a fan of "boring postcards" having amassed a fair collection myself through travels to small towns and the hotels that exist there. Some of the earliest postcards I received from my father when he would travel abroad were these complimentary postcards from hotels and airlines. Nostalgia value, landmarks gone and forgotten, and time travel into fashion, advertising and glamour from days gone past.. love it! Now need to source this book. I hope they included tear out postcards in it!
I did find this book a few months ago in a second hand store, and had to buy it. I plan bringing it to a meetup, and maybe it can travel from postcrosser to postcrosser.
One person’s trash is another’s treasure. I really enjoy procuring the “boring” vintage cards of buildings and landscapes then returning to the spot to try and recreate and see the differences over time. There’s a lid for every pot. This boring book looks fun
This is so funny, I used to follow a tumblr that posted really strange postcards. I think they eventually released a book, but I can't for the life of me remember what it was called!
I would so love to receive one of these! Feels like a time capsule.
I love these cards! I mean, who do you think thought to have postcards printed of an interstate or a car wash? Love it!
I’ve sent most of my boring cards through the forums, where I can either détourne them with text/stickets or send them as is in a “Boring postcards” round-robin (they do happen!). Once I lucked out and found a bag of nearly 100 old postcards for $2 (!!!) in the local Sally Ann thrift store, and most of these were landscapes and town pics from the sixties and seventies. Some were retro or bizarre enough to be interesting in their own right, but most needed a little perking up, like this:
https://community.postcrossing.com/t/sticker-bombing-on-postcard/57724/45
It’s fun to find different ways of “improving” dull and/or brown old cards (so many brown landscapes!), but I only ever send them in a themed round-robin or to someone who expressly asked for them in a profile.
I "read" this last year, and I've recommended it to many Postcrossers since then! I find these cards interesting, although the subject matter is mundane, because it's like a time capsule. I think about it when I take photos of the mundane things in my life.
I may not be in the majority for this, but I love vintage postcards - say, anything older than 50 years. (And I especially love the ones printed on linen in vibrant pastel colors, that keep their color 120 years later)
Thanks for the fun review!
And btw, I would have been thrilled to receive the one with the wood-paneled station wagon outside the car wash. My poor Mom hauled my brothers and I all over the place in one of those, for years!
The great thing about these cards is if somebody never puts a profile wish list in ...well, I pick from my boring and oddities pile. At least they get something different 😊
The one with the gears is the best! I buy a lot of postcards at thrift shops. They are almost all vacation postcards that never got sent. I LOVE cheesy postcards!
I love the sound of boring postcards, I'm going to try and track down a copy. Thanks for the recommendation
These are the types of cards I adore. I even mention in my bio that I want cards like these. Thank you to all the postcrossers who have indulged my weird interests. 😊
I love the blast from the past! I look everywhere for retro PCs.
I have two different books, each called "Boring Postcards," and each featuring postcards from the collection of Martin Parr
These sort of cards fascinate me for all the reasons mentioned above! I'm especially smitten by those that feature a motel — any exterior view of the property, its pool, guest rooms, or the visual cacophony of color palettes, patterns, motifs, materials and textures. Think: A fancy dining room with heavy, dark wood furniture, thick, amber glass light fixtures, red plaid (shag) carpet, and sky blue velvet drapes. Swoon!
I love the Interstate 35 card. Not a car in sight. You can only wish for that. :-)
I have this book! Yes, the postcards are quite boring.
My mom has a copy of this book that my grandpa gave her! Some of the food ones are REALLY unappetizing. I think my favorite card of the lot is an aerial view of some woodland, and a box drawn around part of it as the "proposed site" of some new building. Not even a photo of the building, just a photo of where it might be someday.
Haha so boring they became art!! :)
I actually liked the postcards you chose to shown hah
these are not 'boring' postcards, these are the postcards of my childhood. anyone who grew up in the 70's 80's this is how life was. nostalgia hits hard after a certain point. I NEED THIS BOOK
I sent this card a while back https://www.postcrossing.com/postcards/AU-854535
The postcrosser had written this on their bio: I also love postcards taken to promote something really dull, like a motel, library or town hall with no aesthetic merits.
I had just received a bunch of old postcards from my Mum and this was in there.
This has become a new category of postcards.On the other hand,some topics which are categorised boring,interest certain postcrossers.
So,there cannot be universal boring category of postcards.
I adore old postcards showing smaller businesses, such as the car wash and the hotel above. They demonstrate the pride of business owners who promote their businesses in a friendly and useful way. Even if the business does not last, the postcard commemorates all the hard work. It's my absolute favorite type of card!
Beautiful Interstate 35, which begins in the neighboring gateway city of Laredo, Texas, next to my hometown Nuevo Laredo, Mexico on the border. I'll be happy to swap postcards from this sister cities area 😃
I’d love to receive one of them! Such a fun article.
Great Book - I ordered it, also the volume with pictures taken in Germany.
I definitely have some boring postcards to send.
Yes, I have a couple vintage hotel cards. Waiting for someone on their profile to say they like hotel cards. LOL Haven’t seen it yet.
“Boring Postcards”?
Every single postcard is interesting in some way!!!
But even so, the subject is commented on, and as I see, we talk about it!
So Happy Postcrossing with.... boring postcards :)
xoxo
Oana
I need to make a "boring" pile I can choose from!
I'd love to get such kind of postcards. The appeal is that they're showing something simple and common to those who see it daily, but for me it would be the same kind of experience as say first time going to the supermarket in a new country. People who live there pass this bridge every day, buy this food without second thought, and for me everything is a novelty, I go fully "What's this? What's this?". Plus nostalgy for something I'll never see and life I'll never have.
The most boring picture postcard, which I ever received, had the most interesting longest message created by the sender! For every "boring" postcard I send, I try to "sell" it with a personal colorful message so it transforms into the best card.
I once sent a postcard like this to Italy. https://www.postcrossing.com/postcards/UA-1755830
But the story behind the bridge pictured on it is very interesting: according to legend, one of Odessa’s mayors built it specifically so he could walk over to his mother-in-law’s house for lunch. That’s why it’s called “Mother-in-Law’s Bridge.” I’ve since moved to another city because of the war, but I still miss this wonderful place, which connected two large parts of Odesa.
I enjoyed the comments almost more than the post, lol. Boring is in the eye of the beholder.
I do penpalling also and when I tell them about postcrossing they almost always send along a boring postcard. Im getting a huge stack o f them but dont want to throw them out.
What wonderful postcards! 😎🤩 These cultural postcards with artistic creations with photos from bygone days show us how people in society and cultures lived, worked, and expressed themselves, long ago. The designers and photographers took great effort to create them and produce them, at a time when speedy processes where not aided by personal computers and digital processes. Photographs on postcards are historical archives which tell the story of human history. They let us see the traditional lifestyles, daily routines, cultural aspects and events of past generations. These vintage photos captured American life in the 1950s and 1960s. Seeing these images, memories of my life as a youth are recalled in so many aspects! These settings no longer exist, but in my memory and the images of the not so boring postcards. They are gems!
I once received a postcard—or perhaps a coloring sheet—from India; I didn't realize what it was at first. Still, it was interesting to receive something like that.
Honestly? Those look great. I love day to day, mundane stuff. Maybe that’s why my fav genre is slice of life. I would look at them all the time. Amazing.
I don't have many boring cards to send. But if someone doesn't have information in their profile, these cards are perfect. Personally, I don't like those cards.
I bought some old postcards from Etsy and I got this very odd one. Why is that old Chevy sitting in the road with the driver's door open? We had that same car when I was a kid! I sent it to someone who asked for weird cards. I hope she liked it!
https://www.postcrossing.com/postcards/US-12209967
Very need!
YUP, they're boring alright, but many cards like those make me nostalgic for the days America had tons of factories, and businesses & restaurants were privately owned, not the came chain ones over and over again.
While these are boring to some, they bring back great memories for others. I inherited a collection of some 200 postcards predominantly from the 1940s through early 1960s that largely featured US Post Offices and church camps. While they didn't interest me and I didn't know any of the people they were from, I had no problem finding homes for them on eBay and I made my husband framed set of cards from his home town that he loves.
I've even used boring postcards in my job. Knowing that many businesses used them as advertisements, I've been able to sometimes find that card for something like a gas station that we knew had been on a property but not where. I was able to pinpoint some old fuel tanks at a 1970s campground as well once. It's rare but more than once an old postcard has supplied that bit of info that we needed. It's amazing what you can find when you know what rabbit holes exist!
These are great!
That car wash one is so ridiculous that I'd love to have it just to have it.
I pick up free post cards from hotels and suchlike. They are the boring post cards of the future. It's like burying a time capsule. Some are actually relevant if you are travelling - imagine travelling that highway now and sending the boring post card with an explanation of the difference in time zones. I miss those post cards. They are not as common now as they once were.
I like it very much! looks great
Hallo, the boring cards represent ouer development and makes me smile.
Looking at the first image, I immediately thought of two things: one, that I have seen very, very similar sights to this one, even though i've never travelled I35. Two, there was a time when the whole interstate system of roads in the United States was new, and I'm betting this card is from that time.
The cars in the second image were of interest to me. Mid-sixties I think. One of these postcards sold for $24.95 on June second on eBay here in the states.
Hard to know the scale, but the third image might be of gears used in model trains.
Nothing is really boring if you dedicate some thought to it.
I love these boring cards!
I really enjoyed reading this.
Thank you~
These are absolutely beautiful! I'd love to time travel into some of these scenes.
I like boring postcards because they are a snapshot in time. Like a time capsule. I remember scenes like this from my childhood.
Motels all used to have a couple of free cards in the drawer to send (because no one was going to pay up to call long distance!), and my grandparents collected tons of them. They also got them from restaurants. I now have their extensive collection of vintage cards. I discovered one showing a restaurant that I'd actually visited near Tillamook, OR! The name had changed, but it otherwise looked almost identical. I was thrilled!
After reading this blog I looked for my own copy. I couldn't find one that was reasonably priced (over €100), but he's another book called Postcards (2008), that was more affordable (about €30-40) and delivered swiftly. It's got similar quirky and weird postcards from 1900-1990. It's a hefty coffee table style book. It was published for an exhibition of Mr Parrs collection in Munich. I think that would've been an interesting visit!
wow, i’ll totally have to search for this book! it sounds like something i would love to read :]
I love a boring postcard!!
Wow! I love random postcards.
I love to collect hotel cards. Sadly not many hotels have free postcards anymore, mostly only the luxury hotels. These are some of my cards and please feel free to add photos of any hotel cards you have.
https://community.postcrossing.com/t/collecting-hotel-postcards/693474?u=travellingsheep
I wish I had old boring postcards from hotels and motels.
I love this book and have some of the cards shown in it. Martin Parr died this past December. I hope he knew how much his book means to postcard collectors!
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