The work of the modern American writer D. Westlake is probably known to our readers primarily thanks to the story “Cops and Thieves.” However, in his homeland, the author’s greatest popularity was brought by a series dedicated to the amazing adventures of the virtuoso thief John Dortmunder. These and other works by Westlake that made up the book can hardly be classified as a classic detective story. At the same time, they are extremely fascinating: they are characterized by originality of theme, rapid development of action, variety of plot moves, and the lively, witty speech of the author and characters gives the story a special flavor.