My sole purpose in reading (listening) to this book was to see if there was any reason or explanation given to the spit scene in the film. If you're considering reading for that reason, I'll save you the time - there's none given. It's still a mystery. Maybe someone can share their theory in the comments...

Anyway, it was an interesting story and I don't regret the time I spent listening to the book. If you're interested in learning about being a closeted lesbian living in the orthodox Jewish community, it's definitely worthwhile.