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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/347143.The_Abstinence_Teacher?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="The Abstinence Teacher" border="0" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1189104327m/347143.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/347143.The_Abstinence_Teacher?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">The Abstinence Teacher</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15907.Tom_Perrotta">Tom Perrotta</a> 
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/10740428?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
 rating: 4 of 5 stars Perrotta picks up right where he left off with Little Children, which is suburban New Jersey in the midst of a culture war. Ruth Rasmey is a health teacher who becomes embroiled in controversey for some offhand comments in class. Her policy is that pleasure is good, shame is bad, and knowledge is power — but a new local church seems to disagree on all three points. The threat of a lawsuit over Ruth’s comments gives the church the leverage to rewrite the curriculum around abstinence. The head cheerleader for the abstinence curriculum is a pert, 28-year old virgin named JoAnn, who has a seemingly endless series of friends who’s lives have been destroyed by casual sex. This Struwwelpeter approach to sex education is loathsome to Ruth, but she has to teach it anyway. When she misses a beat, she’s subjected to the humiliation of a remedial class taught by JoAnn herself, in which tenured teachers are compelled to write confessional essays about their sexual regrets and read them to the rest of the class — an exercise that seems to be more in line with religious witnessing than sound pedagogy.
 
 Ironically enough, Ruth herself is unwillingly celibate, a divorced mother who hasn’t had much luck putting together a love life. There is a flicker of hope when her first boyfriend — if you can call him that — finds her online and contacts her. Their impetuous teen romps and reunion are the most poignant scenes in the book, culminating in a very effective moment where Ruth’s wildest dreams almost come true but prove to be incredibly disappointing at the same time. 
 
 Ruth finds herself embroiled in another controversey when her daughter’s soccer team is led in a post-game prayer by their coach, a member of the same troublesome church that’s ruined her professional life. Ruth drags her daughter away, threatening legal action. That coach is Tim, an ex-junkie rocker who is trying to use religion as a way to a better life. His path to salvation is laden with regrets for his past life, resentment of his ex-wife and her materialistic new life, and wistfulness for the party life he left behind. His desire to pray was sincere and spontaneous, and he promises not to do it again, but his church has grander plans for him and his team. 
 
 Through Ruth and Tim, Perrotta shows two people who are good at mentoring young people in very specific contexts, even though their own lives are coming part at the seams. By putting Ruth’s casual thumbs up for kinky sex with Tim’s casual thumbs up for prayer, readers are compelled to ask — whatever their own convictions — why people can’t just live and let live, and let both of them do what they do well. Tim and Ruth are even drawn to each other in a way that is more than sexual, but suggests that the two sides would benefit more from talking than fighting. As in Little Children, The Abstinence Teacher has memorable, believable characters in recognizable messes for which there is no easy solution. If Perrotta has an answer at all, it is just to remind readers of the fragile humanity of everyone who’s involved. 
 
 
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/41531?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Kurtis's review
rating:

Perrotta picks up right where he left off with Little Children, which is suburban New Jersey in the midst of a culture war. Ruth Rasmey is a health teacher who becomes embroiled in controversey for some offhand comments in class. Her policy is that pleasure is good, shame is bad, and knowledge is power — but a new local church seems to disagree on all three points. The threat of a lawsuit over Ruth’s comments gives the church the leverage to rewrite the curriculum around abstinence. The head cheerleader for the abstinence curriculum is a pert, 28-year old virgin named JoAnn, who has a seemingly endless series of friends who’s lives have been destroyed by casual sex. This Struwwelpeter approach to sex education is loathsome to Ruth, but she has to teach it anyway. When she misses a beat, she’s subjected to the humiliation of a remedial class taught by JoAnn herself, in which tenured teachers are compelled to write confessional essays about their sexual regrets and read them to t...more Perrotta picks up right where he left off with Little Children, which is suburban New Jersey in the midst of a culture war. Ruth Rasmey is a health teacher who becomes embroiled in controversey for some offhand comments in class. Her policy is that pleasure is good, shame is bad, and knowledge is power — but a new local church seems to disagree on all three points. The threat of a lawsuit over Ruth’s comments gives the church the leverage to rewrite the curriculum around abstinence. The head cheerleader for the abstinence curriculum is a pert, 28-year old virgin named JoAnn, who has a seemingly endless series of friends who’s lives have been destroyed by casual sex. This Struwwelpeter approach to sex education is loathsome to Ruth, but she has to teach it anyway. When she misses a beat, she’s subjected to the humiliation of a remedial class taught by JoAnn herself, in which tenured teachers are compelled to write confessional essays about their sexual regrets and read them to the rest of the class — an exercise that seems to be more in line with religious witnessing than sound pedagogy.

Ironically enough, Ruth herself is unwillingly celibate, a divorced mother who hasn’t had much luck putting together a love life. There is a flicker of hope when her first boyfriend — if you can call him that — finds her online and contacts her. Their impetuous teen romps and reunion are the most poignant scenes in the book, culminating in a very effective moment where Ruth’s wildest dreams almost come true but prove to be incredibly disappointing at the same time.

Ruth finds herself embroiled in another controversey when her daughter’s soccer team is led in a post-game prayer by their coach, a member of the same troublesome church that’s ruined her professional life. Ruth drags her daughter away, threatening legal action. That coach is Tim, an ex-junkie rocker who is trying to use religion as a way to a better life. His path to salvation is laden with regrets for his past life, resentment of his ex-wife and her materialistic new life, and wistfulness for the party life he left behind. His desire to pray was sincere and spontaneous, and he promises not to do it again, but his church has grander plans for him and his team.

Through Ruth and Tim, Perrotta shows two people who are good at mentoring young people in very specific contexts, even though their own lives are coming part at the seams. By putting Ruth’s casual thumbs up for kinky sex with Tim’s casual thumbs up for prayer, readers are compelled to ask — whatever their own convictions — why people can’t just live and let live, and let both of them do what they do well. Tim and Ruth are even drawn to each other in a way that is more than sexual, but suggests that the two sides would benefit more from talking than fighting. As in Little Children, The Abstinence Teacher has memorable, believable characters in recognizable messes for which there is no easy solution. If Perrotta has an answer at all, it is just to remind readers of the fragile humanity of everyone who’s involved.

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