Schoolteacher Barbara Covett has known none but the most solitary of lifestyles until new teacher Sheba Hart joins St. George’s. Starting by sharing lunches, then family events, the new art teacher draws Barbara into a touching confidence. Unbeknownst to their colleagues, however, another relationship blossoms meanwhile: Sheba has begun a passionate affair with an underage male student. When the details come to light and Sheba falls prey to the inevitable media circus, Barbara decides to write an account in her friend’s defense, revealing not only Sheba’s secrets but her own.
Barbara Covett, lonely sixtyish London schoolteacher, becomes enthralled with Sheba, a younger fellow teacher. Sheba, married and a mother, has an affair with a 15-year-old student. How Barbara handles this is the meat of this neatly written story. Nadia May IS Barbara--self-deluding, jealous, controlling, snide though always civil. May gives voice to subordinate characters as well. The faithless teenager, Sheba's bratty daughter, Sheba herself (increasingly desperate as the boy loses interest), the pompous headmaster all come to life to add to what is a sad and riveting story. Dame Judi Dench plays Barbara in the movie (NOTES ON A SCANDAL); it's difficult to imagine she does it any better than this audio portrayal. J.B.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine
About the Author
Zoë Heller is a feature writer, critic, and columnist. She currently writes a weekly column for the London Telegraph, for which she won the 2002 British Press Award for Columnist of the Year. Born in London, she now lives in New York City.
