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The Abstinence Teacher
Author: Tom Perrotta

Tom Perrotta knows his suburbia, and in The Abstinence Teacher he carves out an even larger chunk of his distinct terrain. Set in the northeastern suburb of Stonewood Heights, Perrotta's sixth book takes on the war between the liberals and the evangelists. When single mother Ruth Ramsay, the sex ed teacher at the local high school, tells her cla... more »ss that oral sex can be enjoyable, the Tabernacle of the Gospel Truth church begins its crusade. Believable or not, the school agrees to an abstinence curriculum and in marches JoAnn Marlowe with her blonde hair and pumps to instill in Ruth the tenets of the new program. Gone are the days of rolling a condom over a cucumber; now Ruth is required to promote restraint, which she does wearily and halfheartedly. These are heady days, when students rat out their teachers and the local soccer coach?Ruth's daughter is on his team?is a divorced ex-druggie and active Tabernacle member. When Tim leads the team in prayer, Ruth wrenches her daughter from the circle and the hostility between the opposing camps grows. Who is bad and who is good? Ruth's youthful promiscuity rises slowly to the surface, while Tim's struggle to stay sober makes him constantly confront his past. He's lost his wife and daughter?also on the soccer team?to his addictions, but now he's clean and married to a Tabernacle girl. His Jesus-loving ways, however, are in direct conflict with his desires, rendering him the most complex and likable character. When he loses his own battle with abstinence at a poker party, the finest scene in the novel culminates with his keying Jesus across the hood of an SUV parked in the drive. Ruth would gladly have sex if it would only come her way, and she also drinks on school nights. A less well-drawn complement to Tim, Ruth is a tolerant liberal with a newly toned body who plays therapist to her gay friends, but who can't accept that her children are interested in Jesus.The lesson is that everybody must give up something. Even Ruth's ex-lover, once a pudgy trumpet player, no longer eats to maintain his abs of steel. So what is lost when we cannot succumb to our desires? Who then do we become? The book is rife with Perrotta's subtle and satiric humor (the Tabernacle is seen as a place of diversity, while the punks, Deadheads and headbangers of Tim's past are all predictably the same), but these questions get lost as the plot winds down. Issues of sex and religion that have shaken the town become, in the end, the story of what Ruth and Tim's newly forged relationship will soon become.

ISBN-13: 9780312358334
ISBN-10: 0312358334
Publication Date: 10/16/2007
Pages: 336
Rating:

Currently 3.3/5 Stars.

105

3.3 stars, based on 105 ratings

Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Book Type: Hardcover
Other Versions: Paperback, Audio CD
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Top Member Book Reviews

Currently 3/5 Stars.

Madge C. (dmconn1) reviewed The Abstinence Teacher on 1/26/2008 + 229 more book reviews

6 member(s) found this review helpful.

The book was well written, and like Jodi Picoult's books, the reader may find themselves siding with characters that may not possess the same values as themselves. However with that said, I was very disappointed in the ending. I felt it just dropped off after a big work up to it.

Currently 4/5 Stars.

Suzanne reviewed The Abstinence Teacher on 2/20/2008

3 member(s) found this review helpful.

Thought-provoking story of seduction within the modern American culture wars. Which is the most seductive force: freedom, love, Jesus, sex, acceptance, moral superiority, family??? The main characters must decide. The author is careful not to judge and lets the reader decide, too. Loved this book.

Currently 2/5 Stars.

Eden W. reviewed The Abstinence Teacher on 8/6/2010

2 member(s) found this review helpful.

In the era of "comprehensive vs. abstinence only" sex education this book barely brushes the surface of the issue. It is a quick read, but gives us nothing new to consider about the issue.

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Currently 2/5 Stars.

SARAH (sukie175) reviewed The Abstinence Teacher on 7/9/2010 + 18 more book reviews

The title of this book and cover info is EXTREMELY misleading! This book is much more about religious choices and the angst of the lead character. I really didn't enjoy this book, in fact our whole book club gave it a big fat zero!

Currently 4/5 Stars.

Hayley (comet71) - Cross Plains, WI reviewed The Abstinence Teacher on 6/22/2010 + 6 more book reviews

Surprisingly good.

Currently 3/5 Stars.

Louise B. (louiseb) - CA reviewed The Abstinence Teacher on 9/5/2009 + 9 more book reviews

Interesting point of view about the intersection of evangelical Christians and the "real" world. Fast read.

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Genres:

Literature & Fiction >> General

TagsFiction, Literature and Fiction

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