Osborne (international public management, U. of Edinburgh, UK) presents 20 papers as part of a research program intended to provide empirical and theoretical understanding of the third sector (i.e. "the place between State and private sector" which "encompasses voluntary and community organisations, charities, social enterprises, cooperatives and mutuals both large and small," to quote the British Office of the Third Sector) from a European perspective. Following the introduction, the papers are organized into eight sections that examine the relationship between the third sector and civil society, social capital, and democracy; the third sector's contribution to and influence on public policy; the role of the third sector in delivering public services; Swedish and Italian perspectives on the concept of co-production; the relationship between the third sector and the government; the idea of "hybrid organizations" where the third sector interacts at an organizational level with the public and private sectors; and Spanish and Greek experiences with social enterprise. Two concluding papers explore the economic implications of a changing Europe for the internal management of third sector organizations and provide a summary of the current state of knowledge and key research questions for the future. Annotation ⓒ2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)