Kaplan, a veteran foreign correspondent and wonderful writer, journeys though much of the third world in this far-ranging, insightful report on sociopolitics, the future and other big topics. Organized geographically, he hops from West Africa to the Nile, Balkans, Central Asia, China and Southeast Asia. Two large sections are devoted to Iran and the former Soviet republics of Central Asia.  (WLD26, $16.00)