One of the least known but most effective Western institutions is the Nuclear Planning Group (NPG) of NATO. Conceived in 1965 as a result of the debacle of the multilateral nuclear force, it has been a forum for consultation on the Alliance's strategic policy, especially regarding tactical atomic weapons and the control of nuclear arms. This is a highly readable and well-balanced account of about as much as can be discussed about NPG deliberations. Whether the NPG will perform as well in the changed military and political circumstances of the 1980s is an open question, as the author recognizes.