Tom Perrotta supposedly has the special ability to "skewer his character’s inconsistencies and faults even as he has compassion on their life." In The Abstinence Teacher, Perrotta once again displays his natural voice as a writer and moves the story along smoothly.
But this story doesn’t really go anywhere, and nothing revelatory occurs. In observing the issues of evangelicalism and sexual freedom, only Ruth and Tim seem like genuine people, with the rest of the story and characters feeling a bit stereotypical. Ruth’s best friends are two gay men who may have the best working relationship in the novel, and her two daughters are gaining an interest in Jesus even as their mom is being criticized by the church for teaching a sex-ed class at the local high school.
Tim is a recovering druggy and alcoholic who had to turn to Jesus to overcome his addictions, but is finding his new Christian wife lifeless and his pastor a bit overzealous. It’s just another day in relative paradises and hells where people attempt to “find themselves” and the only meaningful thing isn’t belief or unbelief, but finding a connection with someone in the mirage of content adulthood. Great, thats nice, such a cliche.
Despite its faults, I still felt for Ruth and Tim. The Abstinence Teacher could be a good sort of indie-film. Diverse groups could benefit from hearing these characters’ thoughts and talking about the issues. Just as long as they abstain from assumptions and feel the freedom to listen and share.
Tom Perrotta once again focuses his observant eye and listening ear to white suburbia in The Abstinence Teacher. Here the conflict is between Ruth Ramsay, a high school sex education teacher who is seeing her curriculum tightened and restrained by a surge of born-again Christian outcry, and Tim Mason, her daughter’s soccer coach who has the team join him in prayer after a game to the chagrin of disapproving parents. Their worlds collide, and Perrotta has a few moments of genuine understanding, but it all feels a little too expected and a bit played out.
While the book is somewhat ambitious, I feel like I could seriously write a better novel on the issue. The main issue I have with this book is, there should be a much larger focus on Ruth, shes supposed to be the main characer, yet 75% of the novel is from Tim's point of view. There’s no real climax and the characters seem to meander and fall to common ground instead of earning resolution
B-
But this story doesn’t really go anywhere, and nothing revelatory occurs. In observing the issues of evangelicalism and sexual freedom, only Ruth and Tim seem like genuine people, with the rest of the story and characters feeling a bit stereotypical. Ruth’s best friends are two gay men who may have the best working relationship in the novel, and her two daughters are gaining an interest in Jesus even as their mom is being criticized by the church for teaching a sex-ed class at the local high school.
Tim is a recovering druggy and alcoholic who had to turn to Jesus to overcome his addictions, but is finding his new Christian wife lifeless and his pastor a bit overzealous. It’s just another day in relative paradises and hells where people attempt to “find themselves” and the only meaningful thing isn’t belief or unbelief, but finding a connection with someone in the mirage of content adulthood. Great, thats nice, such a cliche.
Despite its faults, I still felt for Ruth and Tim. The Abstinence Teacher could be a good sort of indie-film. Diverse groups could benefit from hearing these characters’ thoughts and talking about the issues. Just as long as they abstain from assumptions and feel the freedom to listen and share.
Tom Perrotta once again focuses his observant eye and listening ear to white suburbia in The Abstinence Teacher. Here the conflict is between Ruth Ramsay, a high school sex education teacher who is seeing her curriculum tightened and restrained by a surge of born-again Christian outcry, and Tim Mason, her daughter’s soccer coach who has the team join him in prayer after a game to the chagrin of disapproving parents. Their worlds collide, and Perrotta has a few moments of genuine understanding, but it all feels a little too expected and a bit played out.
While the book is somewhat ambitious, I feel like I could seriously write a better novel on the issue. The main issue I have with this book is, there should be a much larger focus on Ruth, shes supposed to be the main characer, yet 75% of the novel is from Tim's point of view. There’s no real climax and the characters seem to meander and fall to common ground instead of earning resolution
B-
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