It's 'National Stamp Collecting Month'

October is "National Stamp Collecting Month."  Stamp collecting has often been called “the hobby of kings and the king of hobbies.” Linn’s Stamp News estimates that more than 5 million individuals in the United States collect the small pieces of paper that indicate payment of postage.
Stamps collectors include individuals from all walks of life. While President Frank Roosevelt may have been the most famous U.S. collector, other well-known collectors include financial gurus Bill Gross and Warren Buffet; astronaut Henry Hartsfield; actors Gary Burghoff, James Earl Jones and Patrick Dempsey; author James Michener; explorer Jacques Cousteau; former Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova; musicians John Lennon, Freddy Mercury and Ron Wood; cartoonist Gary Trudeau; and former French President Nicholas Sarkozy.

From baseball fans to lovers of mother nature to hard-core collectors, the U.S. Postal Service’s line-up of products for National Stamp Collecting Month has something for everyone.

Among the new products are The 2012 Stamp Yearbook and 39th edition of The Postal Service Guide to U.S. Stamps.
The stamps of 2012 celebrate a rich patchwork of American life — from poets and choreographers to national pastimes and cultural celebrations. Full of intriguing stories, stunning images and exciting new features, The 2012 Stamp Yearbook is the perfect way to savor and enjoy the year’s program.
The Postal Service Guide to U.S. Stamps, in an easy-to-use, oversize format, is a “must-have” for collectors. This fully illustrated four-color guide to U.S. stamps is the official publication providing the most comprehensive information available about the U.S. stamp program. Beginning with the first stamps issued in 1847, the guide covers more than 4,000 stamps issued up to the present.
For baseball fans and stamp enthusiasts, Play Ball! is the perfect keepsake. The 8-1/2” x 11”,40-page softbound book is filled with the vivid paintings of artist Graig Kreindler, whose extraordinary work captures our national pastimes’ biggest icons in action. The issuances included in this book are: The 2001 Legendary Playing Fields, 2010 Negro Leagues Baseball and the 2012 Major League Baseball All-Stars stamps.
Historians and students of the Civil War will want to add to their collection The Civil War: 1862 Commemorative Folio.  This extraordinary commemorative package captures a piece of Civil War history and the second stamp issuance in the five-year Civil War Sesquicentennial series.  The package consists of a handsome tri-fold folio containing The Civil War: 1862 souvenir sheet of 12 stamps and a collectible card showcasing two affixed stamps and two official First-Day-of-Issue postmarks.
Mother Earth never looked so captivating and — collectible — than on a 500-piece puzzle featuring 15 breathtaking images of America’s landscapes as seen from high above the planet’s surface. Sure to provide hours of entertainment for all ages, the 18 x 24-inch puzzle also makes a spectacular piece of art to frame or display once completed. It comes with a sheet of 15 Earthscapes Forever stamps.