A classic of postwar American literature, Last Exit to Brooklyn created shock waves upon its release in 1964 with its raw, vibrant language and startling revelations of New York City’s underbelly.
The prostitutes, drunks, addicts, and johns of Selby’s Brooklyn are fierce and lonely creatures, desperately searching for a moment of transcendence amidst the decay and brutality of the waterfront … decay and brutality of the waterfront — though none have any real hope of escape.
Last Exit to Brooklyn offers a disturbing yet hauntingly sensitive portrayal of American life, and nearly fifty years after publication, it stands as a crucial and masterful work of modern fiction.
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This 1964 book has been described as one fiction writers only recommend to other fiction writers. Exactly what this says about fiction writers is hard to pin down. It’s a brutal book about the harshest aspects of gay male life in Brooklyn after the Second World War. Composed of several novellas, loosely connected, the best one by far is The …
Review #51 of my 52 week book challenge: Last Exit to Brooklyn. u2063
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Wow. u2063
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It’s no wonder this book was banned in the UK when it was first published. The tour de force is certainly one of the best pieces of fiction I’ve ever read. One page, beyond graphic, would make your stomach quiver. The next would bring you to tears. In it, the various …
The story is too realistic , very brutal in describing life of gangs in Brooklyn.
Well written.
Completely adult scenes and language but a true classic. Stomach clenching scenes of a dark reality.
Paints an ugly picture of misogynistic 1950s Brooklyn. This is a fast, stream of consciousness read that truly captures “Brooklyneese” well.
The final tale gives us one of literature’s most complex characters with Harry Black.