April’s issue of Creative Review focus on type and typography. Alison Carmichael is profiled, and the freshly designed CR taxi in Mumbai is given full coverage. For more about the issue here.

Page views after the jump.

Over the weekend the V&A opened their first ever dedicated book shop. Located in South Kensington, not far from the museum itself, the shop is designed with the student and enthusiast in mind. Think a full range of art and design with all the theory one might need thrown in. The space was designed with aid from Vitsoe, who’ve got an eye for shelving. (via Wallpaper*).

Interior images of the V&A Bookshop after the jump.

Heston Blumenthal is, well, a pretty awesome chef. His Fat Duck restaurant gets rave reviews, and his television programs for BBC are basically a thinking mans version of Food Network’s Good Eats (which, to be fair, is a smart show in its own right). The Big Fat Duck Cookbook offers some background on Blumenthal and some recipes that those of us less brilliant behind the stove top may find difficult. That said, if you like food and its history, the tome should be a winner. (via Daily Icon)

Page views follow.

Celebrating the 60th anniversary of the United Nations, The U.N. Building brings alive the organizations home. Photographs and essays combine to share the stories of places and speeches central to global development since the mid-10940s. Contributors include Aaron Betsky and Ben Murphy, who is responsible for the photographs. From Thames & Hudson. (via Daily Icon / curated).

Available now from Amazon.

Images from The U.N. Building after the jump.

Taschen’s “Now!” series offers comprehensive quick burst collections of current trends in art and architecture. In April, the publisher releases Architecture Now! Houses compiling 5 years of remarkable homes and residential experiments from around the world. (via Curated).

More page views from Architecture Now! Houses after the jump.

Wallpaper* has asked Tomas Maier to share a list of favorite coffee-table books. Maier is the creative director of Bottega Veneta, and has recently opened a new store in Miami’s design district. Not surprisingly, architecture, design and fashion tomes fill his shelves (ahem, cover his tables).

Some of Maier’s books we’d like to take after the jump.

This two volume set presents Martin Parr’s collection of objects and postcards. The book stems from an exhibition, Parrworld, curated from Thomas Weski and first show in Munich at Has Der Kunst last May. (Via Daily Icon).

Available from Amazon.

Page views of both books after the jump.

The 2009 edition of The Design Hotels™ Book presents a comprehensive overview of 170 of the most attractive Design Hotels™ worldwide and provides insight into trends and developments in the fields of design and hospitality.

Available now from Gestalten.

More views after the jump.

The good people of Kansas City chose books that represented their city. Then the spines of those books were translated into the facade of the public library’s parking lot. Without singing wild praise, this is just a good idea. A close second to Arthur Bryant’s in the stakes to be KC’s greatest place.

Thanks to Crooked Brains for the heads up, they found a similar project in the works in Wales too.

We’ve reported a good number of books on China’s art, architecture, history and urban planning. Transforming Shanghai fits right in that scope, explicitly discussing and contextualizing Shanghai’s urban explosion. Edited by Iker Gil, the book is published by Actar. Get it from Amazon, read a full review over at Dwell.