The novel is primarily set in New York City,[1] and concerns a Nigerian immigrant, Julius, who has recently broken up with his girlfriend.

The novel has no substantial plot, and instead relies on Julius' insights and "peregrinations" through New York City and the broader world to drive the book.

Sebald, and although Open City has "nominally separate" chapters, its lack of punctuation gives it the "atmosphere of a text written in a single, unbroken paragraph".

Sebald and said that Cole's failure to "dramatize his alienation  ... underscored the ... ad hoc nature of the overall narrative.

[1] In The New Yorker, James Wood praised Cole's inclusion of critical theory as neither a satirical undermining of the academic field or a "[flourish] to exhibit the author's credentials".