Scandal, Manipulation And Obsession (Notes on a Scandal - Zoe Heller)

Member Name: t4mof

Product:	Notes on a Scandal - Zoe Heller
Date:	09/04/05 (870 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Gripping and sinister, Raises interesting issues

Disadvantages: Unsympathetic characters may put some people off

Reading book reviews is my weakness. My “To Read” list grows daily as I’m introduced to more and more books that just sound like they’re worth reading. Notes On A Scandal was one of these books and when I visited a friend and saw it perching on her bookshelf, I cheekily asked if I could borrow it. She hasn’t actually read it herself yet but she happily brought it into work for me and 3 days later I am ready to return it.

The story revolves around two women. Barbara Covett is nearing retirement age and has been teaching at St. Georges Comprehensive in London for many years. She is an observant voyeur of everything that goes on around her and it is from her perspective that we find out about the details of the scandal.

Sheba Hart is a new pottery teacher at St. George’s. Although in her early 40s, this is her first teaching post. She married early and had two children, Polly and Ben. Since Ben was born with Down’s Syndrome, she wanted to make sure he was happily settled before continuing her own career.

As it’s Sheba’s first adventure into the world of education, she has idealistic ideas of inspiring these sometimes difficult children with her art lessons. Unfortunately it all falls rather flat for her early on as most of the pupils are more concerned with commenting on her style of dress – see through skirts and tops probably not the wisest choice of clothing when teaching a group of teenagers – rather than learning about the artists she is passionate about herself. One boy, however, does show an interest, 15 year old Steven Connolly. And pleased that someone is sharing her enthusiasm, she starts to welcome him readily to her classroom.

Although the story is supposedly about Sheba and her ensuing affair with Steven Connolly, as it is told from Barbara’s point of view, she reveals a lot about herself and this is where the darkness in the novel arises. There are constant references to a previous friendship she had with a woman called Jennifer and through her descriptions of this we discover a hidden desperation to Barbara’s character. This desperation means that Barbara is often upset by little things that those less lonely probably wouldn’t even notice. And when the upset and despair turns to anger, it is Sheba’s secret that is under threat.

The affair itself made for really interesting reading. Questions are asked early on about gender differences in these kinds of cases, older woman and younger boy seems to be treated differently than if it had been older man, younger girl. Of course, the underlying assumption is that the adult in this situation is the one with the power in the relationship. Perhaps this power is the reason that the relationship is pursued. Delving deeper into Sheba and Steven’s situation, we are made to challenge this belief.

There are several other characters who play differing roles in the story. At first I found some of the other teachers a little stereotypical – Brian Bangs, the nervous maths teacher who lives alone, Mr Pabblem (always referred to as just Pabblem) the young headteacher full of ideas for changing the school and Sue Hodge, one of the first teachers that Sheba befriends. But on reflection, this is a story told from just one side and Barbara seems to have a lot of contempt for many of her fellow staff. She knows she is aloof from them and most of the comments made about them are quite condescending.

I found the style of the story quite hard to get into at first. The writing is quite formal, after all Barbara is quite a formal lady and her voice comes across strongly. But after a couple of chapters it starts to read quite naturally. The story also flits around from the present to the past as Barbara recounts events surrounding the scandal. This isn’t too hard to follow though as, because it is based around a school, term times and holidays are easily defined. Heller makes good reference to the 6 week summer holidays, Guy Fawkes Night, Christmas and New Year to keep you on track. I also found it frustrating at the beginning to only see the story from Barbara’s point of view. I really wanted to know how Sheba saw the events that were being described rather than just having Barbara’s interpretation.

It is rare thing to enjoy a book with so many unsympathetic characters. I seemed to dislike Barbara more and more as the story progressed, but at the same time wanted to read on as a sinister side became more apparent. There were also questions about her that were left unanswered, or for the reader to make up their own minds, right down to the very end. Sheba is a complex character and although seems to be a likeable person, her actions and for me, her weaknesses, made her difficult to empathise with. I wanted to slap her at several points and make her wake up to the real world. Then there is Sheba’s husband, Richard, and daughter Polly who put in several appearances throughout. Neither are particularly endearing.

It is a short, gripping novel at just over 240 pages and one that I managed to complete in a little over 2 days. There isn’t a lot in the way of action but there is enough suspense to make you want to read to the end. Don’t expect it to be just a description of the scandal and the aftermath. I found it to be more about the relationship that forms between the two central characters. The affair just provides the backdrop and by the end, I was starting to question what the scandal in the title of the book was really referring to, just the affair or Barbara’s manipulation of the situation?

It can currently be bought on Amazon Marketplace for the bargain price of a penny for the paperback or 20p for the hardback or from £5.59 from Amazon themselves and there are usually plenty of copies up for sale on eBay for varying prices. RRP £6.99 for the paperback and £14.99 for the hardback.

Recommended.

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