“Is it the water in Lake Michigan that makes Chicago such a politically corrupt city? That might sound like an outlandish theory, but R. J. Nelson’s Dirty Waters: Confessions of Chicago’s Last Harbor Boss makes a compelling case. . . . There’s a certain Chicagoness to Nelson’s storytelling that’s highly entertaining—the book reads like a series of anecdotes being told by a lifelong resident of the city.”

Chicago Reader

“Fascinating.”

Library Journal

“Dirty Waters is a revealing insider’s tale of a Harold Washington–era reformer battling for change. It tells the stories behind the headlines of the ‘Last Harbor Boss’ of the Chicago Park District. It is written for those who want to know how government really works and how a former protestor, college chaplain, and college administrator opened up the green space and blue space of Chicago and made a cumbersome bureaucracy work for us. Students, scholars, and citizens will read it avidly and celebrate the often unsung heroes of reform.”

Dick Simpson, professor of political science at University of Illinois at Chicago and former Chicago alderman

“Dirty Waters is an insider’s account of what has become known as the ‘Chicago Way,’ the corruption at the very heart of the city’s political machine. This book is an honest, fascinating, and often startling story of how politics, bribery, and just plain ineptitude often plagued the ‘City that Works.’”

Dominic A. Pacyga, author of Slaughterhouse: Chicago's Union Stock Yard and the World It Made

“A joy to read. Nelson’s achievements are undeniable, detailed with good if rough humor. He declared war on the age-old system of gratuities and outright bribes that had maintained the Harbor’s operations in harmony with the citywide culture of ‘where’s mine?’ The results of this campaign are recounted in a feisty, highly entertaining fashion.”

James T. Fisher, Fordham University