The 2012 Maskar Philly Calendar and Almanac arrived by US Mail yesterday. For the third year, Kate Maskar’s team breaks down the city and its history in lively, complex, fun, and beautifully illustrated information maps (that often incorporate real maps and the notion, highly valued around here, of place).

The 11X17calendar ($18), says the Maskar website, is a “year-long look at topics that interest us, are relevant to Philadelphia, and that let us explore interesting ways for presenting data.”

Among the wonders this year: Philly festivals (January), Native American place names and Philly neighborhoods (November), Fairmount Park and the Centennial (April), bike Philly (May–see above), and the Delaware River Basin watershed (July).