This title presents an exhaustive and up-to-date overview of the structure theory of serial rings, and the various methods of treating them. Results have been scattered throughout the literature, and the achievements of some schools, such as the Kiev school, seem little-known. This volume endeavours to unify the wide spectrum of tools used in this area and state the theory of serial rings based on two constructions: firstly, localization with respect to a semi-prime Goldie ideal; and, secondly, a hidden "blow-up" construction in a serial ring. Part of the work deals with the theory of modules over a serial ring, especially with finitely presented and pure injective modules. Other topics include noetherian serial rings and Artinian serial rings.