The Abstinence Teacher

Tom Perrotta

St. Martin's Griffin

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“Perrotta is that rare combination: a satirist with heart….Those who haven’t curled up on the couch with this writer’s books are missing a very great pleasure.”—Seattle Times

Stonewood Heights is the perfect place to raise children: it’s got good schools, solid values and a healthy real estate market.  Parents in the town are involved in their children’s lives, and often in other children’s lives, too—coaching sports, driving carpool, focusing on enriching experiences.  Ruth Ramsey is the high school human sexuality teacher whose openness is not appreciated by all her students—or their parents.  Her daughter’s soccer coach is Tim Mason, a former stoner and rocker whose response to hitting rock bottom was to reach out and be saved.  Tim’s introduction of Christianity on the playing field horrifies Ruth, while his evangelical church sees a useful target in the loose-lipped sex ed teacher.  But when these two adversaries in a small-town culture war actually talk to each other, a surprising friendship begins to develop.

“Nobody renders the world of soccer moms and sprinklers and SUVs like Perrotta. He’s the Steinbeck of suburbia.”—Time

“Tom Perrotta is a truth-telling, unshowy chronicler of modern-day America.”—The New York Times Book Review (in a front-page review)

The Abstinence Teacher illuminates the powerful emotions that run beneath the placid surface of modern American family life, and explores the complicated spiritual and sexual lives of ordinary people. It is elegantly and simply written, characterized by the distinctive mix of satire and compassion that has become Perrotta’s trademark.

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The Abstinence Teacher
PART ONESome People Enjoy ItMiss MoralityON THE FIRST DAY OF HUMAN SEXUALITY, RUTH RAMSEY WORE A short lime green skirt, a clingy black top, and strappy high-heeled sandals, the kind of attention-getting outfit she normally wouldn't have worn on a date--not that she was going on a lot of dates these days--let alone to work. It was a small act of rebellion on her part, a note to self--and anyone else who cared--that she was not a willing participant in the farce that would unfold later that morning in second-period Health & Family Life.

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The Abstinence Teacher by Tom Perrotta--Audiobook Excerpt

Listen to this audiobook excerpt from Tom Perrotta's novel The Abstinence Teacher. Stonewood Heights is the perfect place to raise children, but amid its good schools and healthy real estate market, a small-town culture war is brewing. The Abstinence Teacher focuses on two divorced parents who become adversaries in the mess: Ruth Ramsey is the human sexuality teacher at the local high school who believes that "pleasure is good, shame is bad, and knowledge is power." Her younger daughter's soccer coach is Ti

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Reviews

Praise for The Abstinence Teacher

"He's the Steinbeck of suburbia."—Time
 
"A finely wrought novel."—Jerry Eberle, Booklist
 
“Perrotta is that rare combination: a satirist with heart….Those who haven’t curled up on the couch with this writer’s books are missing a very great pleasure.”—Seattle Times
 
“Tom Perrotta is a truth-telling, unshowy chronicler of modern-day America.”—The New York Times Book Review
 
"Ruefully humorous and tenderly understanding of human folly: the most mature, accomplished work yet from this deservedly bestselling author."
--Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review)
 
"Rife with Perrotta’s subtle and satiric humor."
--Publishers Weekly

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About the Author

Tom Perrotta

Tom Perrotta is the author of five previous works of fiction: Bad Haircut, The Wishbones, Election, and the New York Times bestsellers Joe College and Little Children.  Election was made into the acclaimed movie directed by Alexander Payne and starring Reese Witherspoon and Matthew Broderick.  Perrotta was nominated for an Academy Award for the screenplay for the movie version of Little Children, which was directed by Todd Field and starred Kate Winslet and Jennifer Connelly.  Perrotta lives with his family outside Boston, Massachusetts.

Tom Perrotta

Tom Perrotta

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Available Formats and Book Details

The Abstinence Teacher
Tom Perrotta

Trade Paperback

Trade Paperback
St. Martin's Press
St. Martin's Griffin
September 2008
Trade Paperback
ISBN: 9780312363543
ISBN10: 0312363540
5 1/2 x 8 1/4 inches, 384 pages
$14.99
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Unabridged Compact Disc

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Unabridged Compact Disc
Macmillan Audio
October 2007
Unabridged Compact Disc
ISBN: 9781427201911
ISBN10: 1427201919
Audio Run Time: 11:30
$39.95

Unabridged Digital Audio

Learn more about this edition
Unabridged Digital Audio
Macmillan Audio
October 2007
Unabridged Digital Audio
ISBN: 9781427201928
ISBN10: 1427201927
Audio Run Time: 11:30
$19.95

Hardcover

Learn more about this edition
Hardcover
St. Martin's Press
October 2007
Hardcover
ISBN: 9780312358334
ISBN10: 0312358334
5 1/2 x 8 1/4 inches, 368 pages
$24.95

e-Book Agency

Learn more about this edition
e-Book Agency
St. Martin's Press
October 2007
e-Book Agency
ISBN: 9781429921381
ISBN10: 1429921382
5 1/2 x 8 1/4 inches, 336 pages
$9.99
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