I have recently bought two new beautifully illustrated map books:

Maps : finding our place in the world / edited by James R. Akerman and Robert W. Karrow Jr. (Copublished with The Field Museum, in association with The Newberry Library). Chicago and London, The University of Chicago Press, 2007.
ISBN-13: 978-0-226-01075-5

Cartographia : mapping civilizations / Vincent Varga and the Library of Congress. New York-Boston-London, Little, Brown and Company, 2007.
ISBN-13: 978-0-316-99766-9

I haven’t started reading these books, since they are waiting for me under the Christmas tree.

For those of you reading Dutch, two more books have to be recommended. Both books deal with a major city in the Low Countries:

Antwerpen : atlas van een stad in ontwikkeling / Rutger Tijs. Tielt, Lannoo, 2007.
ISBN-13: 978-90-209-7205-4

Het aanzien van Amsterdam : panorama’s, plattegronden en profielen uit de Gouden Eeuw / Boudewijn Bakker en Eric Schmitz. Bussum, THOTH, 2007.
ISBN-13: 978-906868-4445
The accompanying exhibition in the Stadsarchief Amsterdam runs until January 6, 2008.

I hope I will be able to review these books in the near future.