3 Review(s)

Stealth of Nations is an eye-opening account of the informal economy, and explains the unwritten rules that govern unregulated markets around the globe. Whether it's Nigerians selling Chinese cell phones back home in Lagos, or laid-off San Franiscans using Twitter to sell home-cooked foods, the denizens of this world are mostly entrepreneurs trying to find a way to scratch out a living. Neuwirth brings this shadowy world to life and challenges conventional wisdom about these informal industries--which he calls System D, an African slang phrase for the world of self-made entrepreneurs who make it without any government assistance. He traces its history and shows how it provides essential services and crucial employment that fills the gaps left by more formal systems. Neuwirth also captures the global reach of System D, where Guangzhou has a neighborhood that is almost entirely African (which the Chinese cabbies call "Chocolate City") and Nigerian fishmongers get their supplies from Europe, not local waters. Above all, he argues that this world is far more systematic than one would think: what looks like a chaotic market in pirated goods is often a well-oiled machine that relies on codes and unwritten rules to continue functioning. About the Author Robert Neuwirth lived in squatter communities across the developing world for two years to write Shadow Cities: a Billion Squatters, a New Urban World, and has written for The New York Times and dozens of other publications. Neuwirth has served as a contributing editor of City Limits, which covers housing and social policy issues in the New York area, and Metropolis magazine, a journal of design, urbanism, and planning. In addition to MacArthur Foundation funding, he has received numerous awards, a reporting grant from the Fund for Journalism in American Jewish Life, and a writing fellowship from The Berkshire Forum.