Impatient Virgin

by Donald Henderson Clarke

Because Ruth Robbins was dazzlingly blonde and splendidly put together, the small New England town where she was born and raised thought her "fast." It was even rumored that she believed in free love. And everyone from the handsome Myron, the deacon's son to Mr. Hasbrouk, the president of the bank, tried to make love to her.

Ruth's one real friend was her Uncle Ben. He taught her that whenever her instincts told her she was right, she was right. "If you would like to get drunk or have a palace to live in, recognize the desire in yourself-- don't treat those urges merely as thoughts the devil has put in your mind," he advised her. But Uncle Ben didn't live to see Ruth put her advice into practice. he died soon after she left college. Three days later Ruth started for the big city ...

(from inside cover copy)

Genres: Historical Fiction

313 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1931

Reviews

[Paul Jensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picked this up at an antique store after noticing: it was written in 1931, had a shocking title, and dealt with some taboo subjects (for the time). It's not really a trashy, vulgar book - but the moral and ethical dilemmas presented to the reader are pretty interesting, considering when it was written. This was a rather progressive book for the time! After wrestling with interpreting the tone of the book (is this satire? is it a story of empowerment? is it a cautionary tale?), I finished the book feeling confident and satisfied with what "side" the author was taking. Not necessarily 5 stars by my usual standards, but because this is such an oddity, I can't possibly give it less. :)

[Caroline Eikenberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I happened to find an original copy of this book at a Libraray book sale. Amazingly infuriating main character by the way. Ruth is raised by this CRAZY uncle and overly religious aunt. They are brother and sister, not the married kind of aunt and uncle. The Uncle puts all these ideas into Ruth's head like, a man and woman should live together before they get married. This was in the 20's. We are talking some very controversial stuff. They also believed sex before marriage was alright too. But in their small town people went into fits over this behavior. So Ruth blackmails a judge and uses the money to pay off the family debts after her Uncle dies. The rest of the money is used to move to the big city. Ruth becomes wildly popular with the men, although she's not giving any of them attentions. Ruth has no problem letting men pay for her apartment, tennis lessons, dancing lessons, singing lessons and acting lessons. She also goes to secretary school at some point in there. Ruth is in love with Myron, her childhood flame. His family hates Ruth because of the crazy ideas her Uncle put into her head so Ruth refuses to admit her feelings for Myron. Poor Myron moves to the city and becomes a Taxi Driver while putting himself through medical school and finds himself making love to Ruth as often as possible. But she refuses to marry him before he becomes a doctor because she doesn't want to make his life hard, doesn't want to upset his family and doesn't want to give up her stubborn mind set. Eventually she becomes pregnant and in another controversial move goes to the doctor to ask about an abortion. He consults with her and explains the whole process. It's really startling for a book of this age... but she decides to have the baby and be a SINGLE MOTHER! Unheard of!

Myron doesn't know she's pregnant and has cut her off since she won't marry him. Myron eventually moves home where is parents literally pray him nearly to death. In one of the best scenes in the book her friend rushes her to her home town overnight in his race car. There is great snow, ice drama and she sneaks into the house to take care of Myron. I won't tell you the end though.

This book is crazy for the 1920s. It's still a little controversial today. There is an openly gay character in this book! All in all, a good book. People don't write as well as they did back in the 1920's.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book hidden in my late great aunt's garage. I read it in a single sitting and it was marvelous.

[Tina B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ruth Robbins was blonde, beautiful, and ahead of her times thank to the influence of her friend, guardian, and uncle Ben. Unlike her peers, Ruth wasn’t in a hurry to get married. And she certainly wouldn’t marry a man before living with him to test things out. That included pre-marital sex. The people in the small town where she was born and raised were horrified. They believed her to be fast and a believer in “free love”, especially the deacon who disowned his son Myron for refusing to stay away. Myron didn’t care. He wanted to marry Ruth, but she turned him down without a thought. He gave up everything for her. She didn’t like that anymore than she liked the idea of being poor if she became his wife.

When her Uncle Ben passed away unexpectantly, Ruth blackmailed the president of the bank in order to pay off her family debts and move to the big city. There, she attracted the attention of a wealthy man named Albert. Even though she wouldn’t make love to him as he wanted, she had no problem letting him pay for an apartment, tennis lessons, dance lessons, and even secretary school. Behind his back, she still saw Myron who had become a taxicab driver. The two finally made love, but he cut ties with her when she rejected marriage again. Realizing she’s pregnant a short time later, she decided abortion was her best option under the circumstances. However, a visit with her doctor, an intimate talk with Albert months later, and news about Myron changed her mind about a few things — and took her on a life changing, last-minute adventure.

Sensational, lurid, and racy, “Impatient Virgin” by Donald Henderson Clarke is an American pulp fiction novel. Published in 1931, the language used in the book is dated, but that doesn’t stop it from being a naughty, fun read. I picked it up because I saw it categorized as erotica. I was curious what erotica was like back then. Turns out, it’s not nearly as graphic as it is now, but that doesn’t mean it won’t raise the “interest” of some readers.

[Carrie Poppy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun.