The "hidden microterrorists on our global doorstep" include avian flu, anthrax, mad-cow disease, SARS and other viruses, bacteria and prions. Andrew Nikiforuk catalogues the destruction some of these bugs have wrought. And he warns that we are woefully unprepared for when -- not if -- new pandemics appear. It's bracing, scary stuff. Nikiforuk, one of Canada's foremost writers of non-fiction, has made a career out of cataloguing uncomfortable truths. This is not a book for the faint of heart. After you finish it, you may never eat chicken again. You'll probably avoid hospitals.

On the other hand, it might just save your life.