In the literature of childhood loss and adult redemption, "City of One" stands as a remarkable and powerful addition. The memoir is about the death of the author's parents by the time she was 11 and how she grew up to journey toward academic achievement and personal success.

The tale of a man and the memory that haunts him, River City One is the poetic and compassionate story of John Walker, a lawyer and ex-Marine adrift in a nameless city. Home from the war, he has become a man on the edge, quietly raging against the people he must now work for and live among—the kind of people incapable of understanding the terror he felt in combat and the guilt he carries in his heart. When he meets Ruth, a beautiful, famous singer traveling through the city, John discovers a new passion for living. But as the lies pile up, he takes more and more foolish risks to hold onto his family and the newfound love that threatens them both. Moving and lyrical, River City One is the story of a man discovering that the hardest part of going to war is coming home to face yourself.

In his facile, chatty way the author tells of the city's marvelous growth, taking us from the Loop through that Olympus of Chicago, the Lake Shore Drive to Oak Park and South Chicago. The landmarks of the early settlers and the “beauty spots” of the modern city are all described in such a manner that they cannot fail to appeal to even the most conservative of Easterners. Mr. Shackleton in all his books of the cities, shows each one distinctly; its characteristics, institutions, literary traditions, landmarks, and its people. Nothing is too small for him to chronicle—their habits of speech, their eating, ancestor worship. In each city he manages to discover many odd corners not found by the usual sightseer. His is a sympathetic, clear-eyed, often humorous interpretation of the city in each case.

The Second Edition has been rewritten to provide additional coverage of topics such as urban development and third world cities as well as social issues including homelessness, jobs/housing mismatch and transportation disadvantages. It has also been updated with 1990 Census data.