Cash Crop: An American Dream

by Ray Raphael

Shares interviews with California marijuana growers and those opposed to marijuana, in which they discuss their lifestyles, the region, violence among growers, and the prospect of legalization

179 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1985

Reviews

[steph · Rating 4 out of 5]

my rating just might be slightly biased because i happen to live in one of the places described in this book. some insight into how this market really works, and the effects it has on local economies and communities. written by a long-time resident of the mattole valley who's also been an active and well-known community member.

[Shelby Goddard]

This is a library book and I haven't seen it since we moved. I just keep renewing it online.

[Syd Logsdon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Doing library research for a novel, I found a superb reference in the 1985 book Cash Crop. It consists of a mixture of interviews with law enforcement, growers, enforcers, and near-slave laborers, along with personal stories of Raphael’s days in and around the trade. If you have ever read a book by a professorial type who seems too far removed from his subject to be believed — this isn’t that book.
I was particularly taken by one interview with a old time cop who was thinking back to the early days. He said, “We used to spend all day running around the woods rousting out moonshiners when alcohol was illegal. Then we would relax after work with a joint. Now we spend all day running around finding pot farms and burning the weed, and after work, we kick back with booze.”
That sounds about right. For a longer look, see http://sydlogsdon.com/2016/09/08/215-...

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ah yes. Ray tried to deal with the very interesting question of small time marijuana growing in the hills of Northern California. I know most of the folks he interviewed (their names changed for obvious reasons). It was pre indoor, pre mega farm, pre locked gates and such. There's a local blogger trying to tell the truth and fiction of what is going on now; I hope she'll do a book someday.