Looking like a group of elegantly dressed gentlemen at a formal function, penguins remind us of ourselves. According to author Wayne Lynch, part of our curiosity about these stocky little birds is related to just that -- their almost human behaviors. Like us, they live in communities where they play and fight with one another, steal from each other, hunt for food, quarrel with their mates, form lasting pair bonds, separate, commit infidelities and care for and sometimes neglect or even kill their offspring. Day in and day out, their lives seem unnervingly like our own.

In Penguins of the World, however, Lynch suggests that the life of a penguin goes well beyond the realm of our common shared experience. In the past eight years, Lynch has traveled more than 130,000 miles (210,000 km) to Antarctica, the Galápagos Islands, Argentina, Chile, New Zealand and a dozen remote island clusters in the tempestuous Southern Ocean to observe, study and enjoy this remarkable bird. A self-proclaimed "penguin addict," Lynch has determined that penguin's are more complex and far richer in adaptations and behaviors than humans ever imagined. Penguins of the World is Lynch's record of a journey of discovery.