The 16 essays presented in the book highlight various aspects of the informal economy as an activity that circumvents government rules. The essays are written in the genre of reviews of books by domestic and foreign authors, some of whom are purely academic and journalistic. The book discusses both the global reasons for the development of the informal economy and its Russian specifics, including the Soviet experience, post-Soviet racketeering, the current state of the judicial system, the nature of relations between business and government, and the informal world of work of Russians. The book is intended for a wide range of readers interested in economic problems. Useful for undergraduates, graduate students, teachers and researchers in the field of social and economic sciences.