LSSL 5385: Book 20

That’s Not What Happened

By Kody Keplinger

** Quick Picks **

Keplinger, K. (2018). Thats Not What Happened. Scholastic, Incorporated.

Leanne Bauer is one of six survivors of the school shooting at Virgil County High School three years ago. The gun man fired shots in the computer lab, hallway, and the girl’s bathroom. There were nine victims of the shooting and Lee’s best friend Sarah McHale was one of them. Sarah is known as the girl with the cross necklace and when Lee finds out that her parents are writing a biography about their daughter she’s determined for everyone to know the truth. Lee begins a journey to piece the truth together but soon realizes that some is best left buried.

After the incident, the survivors slowly drift towards one another and become friends, all except one. Kellie Gaynor is excluded from the group of survivors by Ashley because when she recounted what really happened in the bathroom no one believed her. Unbeknownst to her at the time Ashley had spread false information. When Ashley was down on the ground she thought she heard Sarah defending her faith, but in actuality it was Kellie. As a result, no believed Kellie, she and her family were harassed, and they moved before the school was reopened.

Lee gets the inspiration for everyone to write down their own account of what happened in the shooting when she reads Denny’s letter for a scholarship. Before then she hadn’t realized that the other survivors might be struggling with how their stories were being told. Denny was viewed as the blind, black kid who got shot, and his rehabilitation was capitalized on in the media. In his letter, Denny reveals that his two best friends and favorite teacher died that day, he’s grateful that he didn’t actually have to see any of it happen, and feels guilt that he’s not in more pain. His letter makes Lee wonder how the others are dealing with the shooting’s aftermath, and becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth.

Ashley Chambers is the next survivor to write a letter for Lee. She is the mother hen of the survivor’s group, and the one who brought them all together. Ashley always makes a point to check in with them, and they always know she truly cares about them. When the shooting took place, Ashley was in a bit of rut, was living life like she thought she should, but wasn’t happy, and seeing other’s happiness made her feel worse. She was in the hallway because she was avoiding an assignment in class, and was just leaving in the restroom. In the bathroom, she had confronted Sarah on how she had been acting lately and was acting self-righteous. She leaves the bathroom, sees the gun man, and is shot as she runs away. When she lands on the ground, she hears him enter the bathroom, and believes that Sarah told him it was her necklace and defending her faith. She had grown up going to church with Sarah, and made the assumption that that’s who she heard. When she recalled hearing that later on it gave her clarity, and she felt as if God was guiding her again. She was able to forgive the gunman and herself, but unable to forgive Kellie. From her gunshot wound in the back she was left in a wheelchair. After the incident she was reunited with her boyfriend and got engaged, and recently gave birth to her daughter. When the truth is revealed to her about what actually happened in the bathroom she has a hard time accepting it and is upset with Lee.

Eden Martinez was the only other survivor from the computer lab with Denny. She crawled over to him, and realized that his best friend and her cousin Rosi Martinez was dead. Eden was always very shy and concentrated on her drawing. After the incident though when she went off to college she became involved in anti-gun protests, and began giving presentations at colleges and rallies. She felt as if this was the way she could make her family proud, and make up for the fact that Rosi had passed away and not her. While at college though she found an escape from dealing with the shooting, and it was alcohol. Her girlfriend and roommate thought she was only drinking on the weekends, but she reveals in her letter that she was using it on weeknights to dull the pain too. Lee’s letter gave her the courage to reach out to her parents for help and to take a break for a bit from her presentations.

Miles Mason was the other survivor from the hallway and reveals in his letter the guilt he feels. He was always in trouble, had just gotten back from suspension, and had just gotten into a fight in Mr. Nolan’s class. Mr. Nolan was one of the few people who believed that Miles had potential and could turn his life around. Miles is the reason he was in the hallway and believes he’s the reason that Mr. Nolan died. Also, he reveals that he tripped and fell onto Ashley, and wasn’t a hero but a coward when he landed on her. He was the unexpected hero and doesn’t care what others think of him, but doesn’t want Lee to hate him after she learns the truth. He reveals in his letter that he loves her, and doesn’t care if their relationship doesn’t evolve as long as they stay friends. Lee surprises him when she comes over and isn’t mad at him, but kisses him and tells him she loves him too.

This is a shock to both of them because Lee is asexual and doesn’t know if she’ll ever want a physical relationship with anyone. Miles is perfectly okay with taking their relationship at Lee’s pace and what she’s comfortable with. After graduation, Denny, Miles, and Lee are hanging out at their spot for what feels like the last time, and they ask her what she’s going to do with the letters. She’s still uncertain and hasn’t written her own yet. Lee has compiled a document with her accounts of what happened, their letters, and stories about the victim’s lives. Lee finally understands that it shouldn’t be her that decides if the truth is revealed, but that it should be Kellie’s choice.

Lee had met with Kellie previously, but Kellie didn’t want to have anything to do with and just wanted to move on from the shooting. Lee asks to meet with her one last time before she leaves for California and Kellie agrees. She gives Kellie a USB and tells her that all the survivors agree that it should be her that decides what to do with it all. Kellie is glad that Lee will quit bugging her, and puts in a random drawer when she gets home. Before the fourth anniversary of the shooting Kellie is at a grocery store stocking up on food because she always skips class and stays in on that day. When she’s checking out she sees the book Sarah’s parents wrote and on a whim buys it. She reads it and is outraged that she was only mentioned in the books as rumors spread, and once again she was ignored, forgotten, and pushed out of a story that she was a part of. Kellie finally sits down and writes her letter. She knows that she will be okay and she now has power over her story, that they all do.

I’ve read books by Kody Keplinger in the past and this wasn’t her typical romance novel. She really took a leap writing this book and it was beautifully written. She uncovers each survivor’s story, uncovers their truth, and allows them to find their voice. They all dealt with the shooting in their own way, and knew that could lean on each other for support, with the exception of Kellie. School shootings are something that has become a rampant part of today’s society, and Keplinger has written a simply amazing novel that portrays how a group of students dealt with it, each in their own way. It’s a hard topic to write about; to try and get right, and it’s easy to see why it was put on the Quick Picks list.

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