Many of the books written by Ackroyd are in one way or another connected with the life of London and its past, but this book is entirely dedicated to him. For Ackroyd, London is a living organism, growing and changing according to its own laws, and therefore “London” is more a biography of the city than its history. The book contains chapters on the history of silence and the history of light, the history of childhood and the history of suicide, the history of cockney and the history of alcoholic beverages. "London" may be the most significant description of the city ever written.