United Nations; UNICEF; NATO

These are three of the seven titles in Watts' new series 'World Organizations'. They are organised in chapter form but with generous space given to colour photographs and topic boxes. Each title pays attention to the history of its subject and the way that the organisations are run and funded. Yet there are differences of treatment. Prior's book concentrates on specific problems of disease and poverty and the solutions that UNICEF offers to alleviate them.

Grant's is a rather more straight-forward historical narrative which pays attention to the political dynamics and conflicts which have shaped NATO. Melvern's study is largely concerned with the current political and administrative organisation of the United Nations and its role in international relations. Grant's is the easiest text to read and once more demonstrates his considerable skill in organising and conveying information for this age group. It is certainly less disrupted by the intrusion of paragraph headings, topic boxes and photographs, which often seem to be dispersed with more of an eye to the look of the page than the sense that can be made of it. Nevertheless, all of the titles are attractively laid out, and the photographs are well chosen, emphasising the difficult and frequently dangerous work that each of the agencies carry out. Each title has a glossary and a 'Useful Information' section, although only Melvern's includes books beside the web sites and addresses.