Home Feed
Home
Search
Search
Add Review, Blurb, Quote
Add
Activity
Activity
Profile
Profile
Cut Me Loose
Cut Me Loose: Sin and Salvation After My Ultra-Orthodox Girlhood | Leah Vincent
3 posts | 8 read | 27 to read
In the vein of Prozac Nation and Girl, Interrupted, an electrifying memoir about a young woman's promiscuous and self-destructive spiral after being cast out of her ultra-Orthodox Jewish family Leah Vincent was born into the Yeshivish community, a fundamentalist sect of ultra-Orthodox Judaism. As the daughter of an influential rabbi, Leah and her ten siblings were raised to worship two things: God and the men who ruled their world. But the tradition-bound future Leah envisioned for herself was cut short when, at sixteen, she was caught exchanging letters with a male friend, a violation of religious law that forbids contact between members of the opposite sex. Leah's parents were unforgiving. Afraid, in part, that her behavior would affect the marriage prospects of their other children, they put her on a plane and cut off ties. Cast out in New York City, without a father or husband tethering her to the Orthodox community, Leah was unprepared to navigate the freedoms of secular life. She spent the next few years using her sexuality as a way of attracting the male approval she had been conditioned to seek out as a child, while becoming increasingly unfaithful to the religious dogma of her past. Fast-paced, mesmerizing, and brutally honest, Cut Me Loose tells the story of one woman's harrowing struggle to define herself as an individual. Through Leah's eyes, we confront not only the oppressive world of religious fundamentalism, but also the broader issues that face even the most secular young women as they grapple with sexuality and identity.
Amazon Indiebound Barnes and Noble WorldCat Goodreads LibraryThing
Pick icon
100%
review
Dempsey
post image
Pickpick

I just wanted to climb in this book and give her a hug. Heartbreaking, but uplifting. This can be a painful read, so if you‘re sensitive to family drama and uncomfortable sex, be warned.

blurb
LeahBergen
post image

#AuthorOrCharacterWhoSharesYourName I haven't read this yet but I've got a thing for memoirs about people leaving fundamentalist or orthodox religious groups (and cults, too). Leah is a Hebrew name and found in the Old Testament ... but I was named after the Roy Orbison song. 😒 #RiotGrams

BookBabe That's awesome! Roy Orbison is magnificent. ❤ 7y
Krisjericho I also have a thing for those kind of memoirs! 7y
See All 14 Comments
ReadingEnvy Love those memoirs too. I think we've had this conversation already. But this is definitely on the list. 7y
BarbaraTheBibliophage This one's on my TBR too! 7y
drbethandherkindle Oh boy I love this genre too! 7y
Hobbinol Better than being named Ooby Dooby😉 (edited) 7y
LeahBergen 😂 I had to search for that song and give it a listen! 7y
Krisjericho @rubyslippersreads That one looks fantastic! I actually used to be Mormon and resigned from that church, so I find those ones particularly interesting. 7y
MrBook Interesting cover. 7y
LeahBergen @ReadingEnvy I think we DID just talk about this. 😂 7y
LeahBergen @rubyslippersreads That sounds good! 7y
106 likes7 stack adds14 comments
blurb
24in48
post image

I've got such a thing for memoirs about people escaping a religion. This one, about a woman who leaves ultra-orthodox Judaism, is one of my favorites. I definitely recommend splitting your fiction reading during #24in48 with some great narrative nonfiction. We've got #12daystogo until the start of #readathon. Who's getting excited?

ReadingEnvy Ooh I really want to read this one. 7y
kgriffith Oh man, talk about relatable. Mennonite mom here... 7y
Gissy What is 24 in48 readathon? 7y
See All 7 Comments
24in48 @Gissy Participants read for 24 out of 48 hours over the course of a weekend. Next one is coming up on Jan. 21-22nd. Check out 24in48.com for more info! 7y
alisahar Definitely adding this- I also love this genre. 7y
alisahar You might be interested in this one too @24in48! 7y
24in48 Thanks @alisahar! Great rec! 7y
91 likes17 stack adds7 comments