UNICEF; Greenpeace

Here are two worldwide life-enhancing organisations anatomised in great detail: UNICEF - about which we always think we ought to know more, and Greenpeace about which we always think we know more than we do. This duo will correct the balance either way, each presenting its subject's history, growth, modus operandi, challenges and campaigns, and plans for the future.

We learn about the surprising diversity of UNICEF - from saltiodization in Switzerland to teacher-training in Iraq. We learn, too, of disquiet within the corridors of power at Greenpeace - too many corridors, too little direct action? But despite these books' fact-filled potential for valuable use, the density of their texts and the crowding of their pages makes for heavy going, and only the most dedicated or desperate reader will be inclined to extract their full value. This world watch needs winding up.