She's the best. This seventy-something Irish grandmother writes from the heart with authority and verve, interweaving three separate trips throughout the region with history, crack reportage and her usual astute observation. Her Balkan Journeys are three: a visit to Croatia over the holidays in 1991-92, a more extensive trip to Serbia in 1999 and a grand tour through Croatia, Boznia-Herzegovina, Albania, Montenegro and Kosovo in 2000. She's no dilettante either, preferring to linger and to travel by foot or bicycle (or, in some cases, by mule).  (BLK43, $15.95)