The 2009 Stamp Yearbook is on sale at post offices nationwide and online.It’s loaded with colorful graphics, illustrations and photography and is a review of stamps, stamp art, stories and behind-the-scenes details and highlights of the Postal Service’s stamp offerings for 2009.

Stamp themes in 2009 included subjects as diverse as American history, pop culture, heroes, natural and man-made wonders.

For stamp aficionados, philatelists and those on your gift list who appreciate sophisticated collectible Americana, the 2009 Stamp Yearbook from the Postal Service makes a terrific gift.

The 64-page yearbook features full-length stories on each stamp issued in 2009, short vignettes about each stamp, and a compelling array of artist profiles, timelines, and quotes.

The 2009 Stamp Yearbook, priced at $59.95, includes 61 collectible stamps. It’s available in select post offices and online at usps.com/shop. It also may be ordered by calling 1-800-STAMP-24. The yearbook highlights an array of men and women who helped fulfill the promise of America.

From entertainment icons Bob Hope and Gary Cooper, to educator and activist Anna Julia Cooper, and a host of brave civil rights pioneers and visionary leaders such as Abraham Lincoln, this year’s honorees represent our nation at its best.

Another great gift that would appeal to stamp collectors is The Postal Service Guide to U.S. Stamps, 36th Edition.

Updated annually, this official publication is a fully illustrated, four-color guide to U.S. stamps. It provides comprehensive information about every U.S. stamp issued from 1847 to the present, including the complete 2009 stamp program with first-day-of-issue details, stamp collecting tips, a glossary of philatelic terms and other information. The publication is priced at $19.95 and is also available online at usps.com/shop.

For more information about purchasing stamps, stamps by mail, postal regulations, a free subscription to USA Philatelic magazine, Post Office events, the location of the nearest postal store or contract unit, or for answers to your specific Postal Service questions, contact USPS at 1-800-275-8777, or visit www.usps.com. To schedule a presentation for your community, club or group on how the Postal Service brings the Post Office to your home or office computer, call 239-573-9638.