Victory for Kids: The Cleveland School Voucher Case, by David L. Brennan. New Millennium Press. 176 pages. $21.95.

This brief, simply-stated book traces the 10-year battle that led up to the U.S. Supreme Court's Zelman v. Simmons-Harris decision, a 5-4 conclusion that ultimately may have more impact on public education policy in the United States than any other occurrence since Brown v. Board of Education ordered desegregation of U.S. schools in 1954. Its author is an Akron, Ohio, lawyer and businessman who spearheaded the movement there to institutionalize school "vouchers" -- the arrangement through which parents at or near the poverty level can be given certificates to help pay tuition for children whom they send to private schools. Its proponents see it as a vital, dynamic way to introduce creative competition in public and private education systems alike, to shake up a notoriously self-satisfied and unresponsive public education establishment. To anyone interested in the issue or in the role of private leadership stepping forward to take charge of public initiatives will find this book instructive.