Below the jump, I mention the books that I received recently, either as gifts or as review copies, or that I purchased somewhere. These are the books that I may review in more depth later, either here or in print somewhere in the world.

When I get new books, I like to share them with people. Unfortunately, you are all so far away, so I cannot host a book party in my crib where you can look then over, so I'll do the next best thing. I'll host a book party on my blog each Friday of the week when I either purchase books or when they arrive in the mail. In this New Book Party, I will try to be your eyes by presenting my quick "first impression" – almost as if we are browsing the shelves in a bookstore – and I'll also provide relevant videos about the book and links so you can get a copy of your own.

Books that arrived this week:

Pandemics: What Everyone Needs to Know by Peter C. Doherty [Oxford University Press, 2013; Guardian Bookshop; Amazon UK; Amazon US/kindle US]
Publisher's synopsis Pandemics. The word conjures up images of horrific diseases sweeping the globe and killing everyone in their path. But such highly lethal illnesses almost never create pandemics. The reality is deadly serious but far more subtle.
In Pandemics, Peter Doherty, who won the Nobel Prize for his work on how the immune system recognizes virus-infected cells, offers an essential guide to one of the truly life-or-death issues of our age. In concise, question-and-answer format, he explains the causes of pandemics, how they can be counteracted with vaccines and drugs, and how we can better prepare for them in the future. Doherty notes that the term "pandemic" refers not to a disease's severity but to its ability to spread rapidly over a wide geographical area. Extremely lethal pathogens are usually quickly identified and confined. Nevertheless, the rise of high-speed transportation networks and the globalization of trade and travel have radically accelerated the spread of diseases. A traveler from Africa arrived in New York in 1999 carrying the West Nile virus; one mosquito bite later, it was loose in the ecosystem. Doherty explains how the main threat of a pandemic comes from respiratory viruses, such as influenza and SARS, which disseminate with incredible speed through air travel. The climate disruptions of global warming, rising population density, and growing antibiotic resistance all complicate efforts to control pandemics. But Doherty stresses that pandemics can be fought effectively. Often simple health practices, especially in hospitals, can help enormously. And research into the animal reservoirs of pathogens, from SARS in bats to HIV in chimpanzees, show promise for our prevention efforts.
Calm, clear, and authoritative, Peter Doherty's Pandemics is one of the most critically important additions to the What Everyone Needs to Know series.
My first impression: This book is really a FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) where the questions are placed into chapters based upon category, along with readable and deeply researched answers. This is a very thorough exploration of the topic of pandemics and would be an excellent addition to any school health course.

Wildlife of Australia by Iain Campbell and Sam Woods [Princeton University Press, 2013; Guardian Bookshop; Amazon UK; Amazon US]
Publisher's synopsis Ideal for the nature-loving traveler, Wildlife of Australia is a handy photographic pocket guide to the most widely seen birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and habitats of Australia. The guide features more than 400 stunning color photographs, and coverage includes 350 birds, 70 mammals, 30 reptiles, and 16 frogs likely to be encountered in Australia's major tourist destinations. Accessible species accounts are useful for both general travelers and serious naturalists, and the invaluable habitat section describes the Australian bush and its specific wildlife. Animal species with similar features are placed on the same plates in order to aid identification. Wildlife of Australia is an indispensable and thorough resource for any nature enthusiast interested in this remarkable continent.

• Easy-to-use pocket guide
• More than 400 high-quality photographs
• Accessible text aids identification
• Habitat guide describes the Australian bush and its specific wildlife
• Coverage includes the 350 birds, 70 mammals, 30 reptiles, and 16 frogs most likely to be seen on a trip around Australia

My first impression: I have never been fond of photographic field guides, and this book did nothing to change my mind. However, that said, this book is intended for beginning wildlife watchers and for travelers who wish to know what that animal was that they saw whilst walking to the loo early in the morning. And this book succeeds at accomplishing that task. Features that I really like include the vegetation map of Australia and the catalogue of the different habitat types found in Australia -- this section includes both a written description and a photograph. I was disappointed that photographs of dimorphic birds typically featured only the male -- not the female nor juvenile birds and of course, the photographs were of varying quality and showed only a limited number of field marks. In general, field guides are not meant to be amusing, but I did smile when I saw the photograph that accompanies the entry for the European rabbit (p. 49), and the photo of the courting Victoria's riflebirds (p. 231). I was surprised to realise how few mammals, amphibians and reptiles occur in Australia and I was particularly surprised that the critically endangered and nocturnal Tasmanian devil was included whilst a number of rare birds were not. I was impressed that a fact-checker caught the misidentified bird photographs on page 192 (errata appears on a small inserted sheet inside the cover) and several other errors that presumably will be corrected when this book is reprinted.

Winning: Reflections on an American Obsession by Francesco Duina [Princeton University Press, 2010; Guardian Bookshop; Amazon UK; Amazon US/kindle US]
Publisher's synopsis Most of us are taught from a young age to be winners and avoid being losers. But what does it mean to win or lose? And why do we care so much? Does winning make us happy? Winning undertakes an unprecedented investigation of winning and losing in American society, what we are really after as we struggle to win, our collective beliefs about winners and losers, and much more.
Francesco Duina argues that victory and loss are not endpoints or final destinations but gateways to something of immense importance to us: the affirmation of our place in the world. But Duina also shows that competition is unlikely to provide us with the answers we need. Winning and losing are artificial and logically flawed concepts that put us at odds with the world around us and, ultimately, ourselves. Duina explores the social and psychological effects of the language of competition in American culture.
Primarily concerned with our shared obsessions about winning and losing, Winning proposes a new mind-set for how we can pursue our dreams, and, in a more satisfying way, find our proper place in the world.
My first impression: With the Nobel Prizes looming on the horizon, winning is on everyone's mind right now. But when you think about it, nearly everyone on the planet is a loser. Since we're (mostly) a bunch of losers, why do so many people care about winning? Does this obsession with winning damage our interactions with our community, and with the world? This thought-provoking and incisive book explores these issues and more, and is well-written and definitely worth reading.

What book(s) are you reading? How far are you along in the book? What do you think of it so far? Do you think your book is worth recommending to others?

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GrrlScientist can also be found here: Maniraptora, she also lurks on social media: facebook, G+, LinkedIn, Pinterest and of course, she's quite active on twitter: @GrrlScientist