What is the theme in Last Exit to Brooklyn by Hubert Selby?

Social isolation is another theme in the book. The novel has a range of colorful characters, intent on being different and it is because of them being different that society pushes them to the margins. In this case, it is Brooklyn. An industrial hellhole where the sailors come into port, cause trouble and sleep with the local girls. The author suggests that because of this the community see the locals that live there as the dregs of society, people that society does not want to have to deal with. For example as a child, Vinnie continuously gets away with breaking the law. When he and his friends brutally beat up a sailor, the police question them, but ultimately let them go without making an arrest. It seems the y can do anything as long as they stay within the boundaries of Brooklyn.