What was she Thinking? Notes on a Scandal by Zoe Heller

I took Sasha to the library for the first time and picked out a few books to get back in the swing of reading.  This title looked familiar to me, and indeed it had been shortlisted for the Man Booker a few years ago.

The story is about a teacher named Sheba at a small school in England who has an affair with a student.  It is told by her friend Barbara, who is secretly writing an account of the affair.  Sheba is married with two kids, while Barbara is single.  By the end of the story (told in flashback, so this is revealed at the beginning), Sheba's secret is out and she is vilified in the press and separated from her family.

Barbara's telling of the story is eerie - her unemotional character reminded me of Kath in Never Let Me Go, and early in the book it is hard to tell if it's because she is acting like a reporter, jealous, or for some other reason.  It's also one of those books where the story is about Sheba but the protagonist is someone else - in this case Barbara. By the end of the book, Barb's actions are far more interesting than Sheba's.

I liked this book and read it quickly.  My only disappointment was not connecting more with one of the characters, although I believe that to be an intentional choice on Heller's part.