According to the book description of Shafer City Stories-Tales of the NYPD in East Harlem, "New York City, East Harlem, 1998. The city was still dirty and dark, a place of horror and wonder all at the same time. Shafer City Stories goes inside the minds and hearts of the cops on patrol in East Harlems 25th precinct. These men and women are sometimes brutal, sometimes kind, and always human. These cops are not John Wayne in a uniform; they are real people who feel the streets inside their souls. Shafer City Stories will make you sad, it will make you angry, it will make you reflective, and most of all it will leave you with a story that you will never forget."