Kasher in the Rye: The True Tale of a White Boy from Oakland Who Became a Drug Addict, Criminal, Mental Patient, and Then Turned 16

Moshe Kasher

Mar 2012 · Sold by Grand Central Publishing

About this ebook

In this "moving and powerful memoir" (Mayim Bialik), comedian Moshe Kasher details his outrageously dysfunctional early years in this darkly hilarious, absurd coming-of-age story.

Rising young comedian Moshe Kasher is lucky to be alive. He started using drugs when he was just 12. At that point, he had already been in psychoanlysis for 8 years. By the time he was 15, he had been in and out of several mental institutions, drifting from therapy to rehab to arrest to...you get the picture. But Kasher in the Rye is not an "eye opener" to the horrors of addiction. It's a hilarious memoir about the absurdity of it all.

When he was a young boy, Kasher's mother took him on a vacation to the West Coast. Well it was more like an abduction. Only not officially. She stole them away from their father and they moved to Oakland , California. That's where the real fun begins, in the war zone of Oakland Public Schools. He was more than just out of control-his mother walked him around on a leash, which he chewed through and ran away.

Brutally honest and laugh-out-loud funny, Kasher's first literary endeavor finds humor in even the most horrifying situations.

Ratings and reviews

Moshe Kasher was born into a life so confusing, unique and tumultuous that 'dysfunctional' really doesn't adequately describe it. Anger issues inherited from his gene pool are a struggle, resulting in psychotherapy starting at an early age. After a vacation to California that turns out to be a permanent move, Kasher finds himself a minority white kid in Oakland's tough public school system. He learns to numb his pain and becomes an alcoholic and an addict who will do anything to survive. The school system doesn't want him. People don't want him near them. He finds solace in a small pack of like-minded folk with whom he shares the downward spiral of poor decisions on a daily basis. The mental hospital added to the experience but yet he continues to persevere. Then he turns 16. Not since Hunter S. Thompson's "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" has a book taken its reader through such a tangled, windy, thorny path that is so atrocious that there is actually humor to be found. Listening to the audio book was fun although I do admit I had to roll up the car window if I were in a congested area lest I shock the passerby with the words coming from my speakers. Mr. Kasher has done a wonderful job with his memoirs. I could see in my mind people I have known in life. I laughed out loud more times than I can count. I loved the shock value that waits to be discovered in every single scene. WARNING: Very graphic descriptions and the language is crass and possibly offensive to some.

Moshe Kasher delivers a stark, snarky, tender insight into several subsets of the human experience. Through his addiction, social ostracism, devout religious upbringing and hoodrat stuff, he paints a mural of conflict born from circumstance and the transformation it inspires. Genuine laughter, heartwarming nostalgia and a dash of disgust pepper this memoir in perfect, delightful measure. A strongly recommended read in general, especially for those with experience in the broken family sector. I hope Moshe continues to scratch at his itch for writing in the future.

Could not put this book down! tragic and hilarious, by the end ,I was bawling. What a ride! Fantastic!!

About the author

MOSHE K ASHER is a stand-up comedian, writer, and actor. He has written for various TV shows and movies, including HBO’s Betty, Comedy Central’s roasts and Another Period, Zoolander 2, Wet Hot American Summer, and many more. His Netflix specials include Moshe Kasher: Live in Oakland and The Honeymoon Stand Up Special. He’s appeared in Curb Your Enthusiasm, Shameless, The Good Place, and other fun things. He co-hosts The Endless Honeymoon podcast with his wife, Natasha Leggero. Kasher lives in Los Angeles with Leggero and their daughter.