Zoë Heller

When the new teacher first arrives, Barbara immediately senses that this woman will be different from the rest of her staff-room colleagues. But Barbara is not the only one to feel that Sheba is special, and before too long Sheba is involved in an illicit affair with a pupil. Barbara finds the relationship abhorrent, of course, but she is the only adult in whom Sheba can properly confide. So when the liaison is found out and Sheba's life falls apart, Barbara is there...

Notes on a Scandal

Grace McCarter

‘No, I know I’m not old. But it is too late. It always was. A few years back, I became terribly righteous and angry about everything I thought I’d sacrificed for my family. I had this idea that if only I hadn't met Richard, and buried myself in marriage so young, I would have done brilliant things, made great sculpture, travelled the world, or whatever. One night I even told Richard that he had “deadened my imagination”. God! And eventually, Richard got so bored with my complaining that he renovated the basement and turned it into a studio for me. He worked out a new timetab]e with the babysitter and everything, just so that I could have three afternoons a week without Ben. He took a lot of trouble and it cost a lot of money which we couldn't afford... And you know what? After all that, I still didn't do anything really. I mean, I made some very pretty plates. I even made a few sculptures. But they weren't any good. Mostly, I watched daytime soap opera and took naps.’ She laughed. ‘It turns out that Richard and the kids hadn't been stopping me from doing anything. Quite the reverse. Marriage, for me, has been a wonderful cover-up for my fundamental lack of drive.'

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