Book description
There was a time when young people were the most passionate participants in American democracy. In the second half of the nineteenth century--as voter turnout reached unprecedented peaks--young people led the way, hollering, fighting, and flirting at massive midnight rallies. Parents trained their children to be "violent little partisans," while…
Why read it?
2 authors picked The Virgin Vote as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
This book has been one of the most interesting and enjoyable ones I have read recently. Grinspan looks at how political parties tried to cement voters’ loyalty for a lifetime by courting their first (or virgin) vote. He also discusses the importance of voting and political parties in shaping the lives of young people. Young people are often overlooked in traditional historical scholarship, but Grinspan treats them seriously.
From Mark's list on early U.S. presidential campaigning.
Grinspan’s fluid prose wonderfully evokes the social world of antebellum politics, showing the central role that children and young people played in the nation’s political life. In an age when popular amusements in small towns were few, politicking provided compelling spectacle and diversion for Americans of all ages. Among many other insights, Grinspan shows how the emotional intensity that male youths brought to politics—especially as members of quasi-military organizations like Wide Awake Clubs—helped define the raucous tenor of the 1850s that led to the Civil War.
From Frances' list on childhood in Civil War Era America.
If you love The Virgin Vote...
December on 5C4
Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!
On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…
Want books like The Virgin Vote?
Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like The Virgin Vote.
Share your top 3 reads of 2025!
And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.
1,277
readers submitted
so far, will you?
📚 If you like The Virgin Vote, you might also like...
The Bridge
The Bridge provides a compassionate and well researched window into the worlds of linear and circular thinking. A core pattern to the inner workings of these two thinking styles is revealed, and most importantly, insight into how to cross the distance between them. Some fascinating features emerged such as, circular…
And Then They Were Gone
Of the 918 Americans who died in the shocking murder-suicides of November 18, 1978, in the tiny South American country of Guyana, a third were under eighteen. More than half were in their twenties or younger.
The authors taught in a small high school in San Francisco where Reverend Jim…
