That’s Not What Happened

Three years ago, Leanne (Lee) Bauer, a high school senior, survived the Virgil County High School massacre. Lee was one of six survivors, and ever since the tragedy, a story has been going around that her best friend, Sarah, died while declaring her faith. But that story isn’t true, and Lee knows it. The main conflict arises from Lee’s dilemma: whether to remain silent for the sake of others’ comfort or to tell the truth about what really happened, even if it means angering her community and losing people she cares about. Her desire to set the record straight shows her quiet courage and need for justice, even as she wrestles with guilt, isolation, and the weight of being a survivor. This conflict forces readers to think about how far they’d go to speak the truth in a world full of falsehoods. 

That’s Not What Happened has a powerful and emotionally driven plot that focuses on Lee’s wish for all survivors to write letters about their experiences in order to keep the truth of the events alive. The story is told entirely from Lee’s point of view, but she includes the letters of the other survivors to provide a more in-depth look at their perspectives. This structure emphasizes how the truth is often fragmented and how every perspective adds complexity.   

Lee is an emotionally complex character, and her desire to tell the truth makes her admirable. She hopes to keep an honest record, rather than letting myths spread through the public. This journey causes her to face ridicule, as well as her own pain and trauma. She risks losing friends, facing violence, and reliving the death of her best friend. She struggles with guilt, isolation, and the pressure of being one of the survivors, making her voice personal and grounded.  

The other survivors include Miles, Denny, Ashley, Eden, and Kellie. Each brings a unique perspective to the event. Kellie, who was in the bathroom with Lee and Sarah during the shooting, is the one who professed her faith to the shooter. Because of her dark and edgy style, no one believed her. Instead, the public assumed it was Sarah and idolized her for it, leaving Kellie to deal with ridicule and hate for “lying.”    

Ashley, another upperclassman, was left paralyzed and in a wheelchair after the shooting. She became extremely religious and defended the story of Sarah. She was the one who started the story in the first place. She swears she heard Sarah declaring her faith. Kellie and Ashley don’t interact in the present or much in the past, but their conflicting truths create tension throughout the novel. Readers can sympathize with Kellie for being ridiculed by her community and for telling the truth. They can also sympathize with Ashley for clinging to a story that gives her pain meaning.  

Before the shooting, Miles was about to be expelled for constantly fighting and breaking rules, but now he’s seen as a hero for covering Ashley’s body and keeping her from being shot again. Despite his rough edges, he’s compassionate and brave. Throughout the story, he begins to form a romantic relationship with Lee. This romance is significant because it demonstrates that healing can enable one to start loving again. Their relationship adds a quiet hope and calmness to the otherwise heavy narrative, reminding readers that life continues even in the wake of tragedy.  

Now in college, Eden has become a powerful advocate, giving speeches about gun safety. Behind this, however, she struggles with alcoholism, using it to cope with the pain and memories. Denny, a blind student, experienced the shooting differently from everyone due to his lack of sight. His trauma is uniquely portrayed because he heard the terror around him but did not see anything, showing that trauma is not just visual and that disability shapes, but does not lessen, a person’s experience or strength.  

By showing each character’s unique perspective, That’s Not What Happened demonstrates that, no matter how simple the truth may be, telling it can come at a great cost. Together, these characters illustrate how people can experience the same event in vastly different ways and how trauma can profoundly shape someone’s life. This diverse cast allows readers to see the far-reaching impact of violence from multiple perspectives, fostering empathy and understanding.  

That’s Not What Happened deals with the harsh aftermath of a school shooting. It’s worth reading for any teens and adults who want a deeper exploration of grief, trauma, identity, and courage. The journey and characters are powerful and realistic. The book also examines the influence of public perceptions on survivors, faith, and identity, as well as the emotional consequences of a tragedy. Its main message is that truth matters, and courage isn’t always based on physical heroism; sometimes it’s just telling your story. That’s Not What Happened challenges readers to examine how narratives are shaped, and consider who has the right to speak them into existence.  

Sexual Content 

• Lee is asexual. “I’ve known for a while that I’m on the asexual spectrum. . . There are boys I’ve had romantic feelings for, but I’ve never had any desire to do more than hold hands or maybe kiss.”  
• Lee tries to explain being asexual in terms of food, and Miles replies, “So . . . sex is eating.” 
• On the day of the shooting, Sarah and Lee were in the bathroom. Sarah was attempting to cover the hickeys left by her boyfriend. “If [Sarah’s parents] found out I got a hickey behind the shop building when I was supposed to be at an FCS meeting. . . ” 
• Eden has a girlfriend named Jenny, and they’re affectionate towards each other. “Jenny kissed her on the cheek.” 
• Lee teases Miles after she accepts his prom proposal. Lee said, “Don’t put down my truck just because you’re sad about not getting laid.” 
• Miles and Lee kiss. “I stepped closer to him again and then slowly, gently, pressed a kiss to his lips.” 

Violence 

• The story focuses on the aftermath of the events of the Virgil County High School massacre, a school shooting that took nine lives. It is consistently referenced throughout the novel. “I was one of the girls in the bathroom with [Sarah] the day she was murdered. And I–Leanne Bauer–am one of the six witnesses who survived the shooting.”  
• In a scholarship essay, Denny recounts his experience of the shooting. “I didn’t know what the popping sound was. I just knew it was loud. . . Even when the bullet went through my arm, just below my elbow, it didn’t register. I felt the pain and knew I was bleeding, but still couldn’t connect the dots.” 
• When visiting the school with detectives, Lee recounts the shooting. Lee “kept picturing the inside, the light tiles darkened with blood. Gunshots and screams. They were like sounds, but I knew I wasn’t hearing them.”  
• Lee attempts to tell Sarah’s parents the truth about what occurred during the shooting. She describes how she and Sarah “were in the stall, and she was holding my hand, and he just. . . he shot her. He didn’t talk to her.” 
• Ashley recounts her experience of the shooting while outside the bathroom. “Not until I looked down at the sliver of the classroom visible between [the shooter’s] feet. And saw blood spreading across the carpet . . . I felt something hit me–hard–in my lower back.” She was shot in her spine, paralyzing her legs. 
• Tara grabs Lee’s wrist while at prom and tells her, “It should’ve been you who died in the bathroom that day, Lee.” 
• Lee recounts Sarah’s death. “The short version is that he found us and shot twice over the edge of the stall. One bullet hit the wall, near my head, and the other hit Sarah, who was killed instantly, her limp body collapsing into my arms.” 
• Random students confront Lee while at a party and corner her, causing her to have a panic attack. The students, including Peter, were shouting at her for the “lies” she was spreading. Lee “tried to rush forward, but Peter caught [her] by the shoulders and shoved [her] back against the wall.”  
• Miles recounts a fight he had with another student after the student brought up Miles’ dad’s mugshot: “I jumped out of my seat and threw a punch right at his face. He ducked, and I missed, but I tried again.” The fight doesn’t escalate due to Coach Nolan stepping in.  
• Miles talks about watching Coach Nolan be shot and killed while trying to talk down the shooter. “Before Coach Nolan could even finish that sentence, there were two bullet holes in his chest.” 
• Kellie talks about the shooting from her point of view. “I heard the gunshots. It only took me a second to know what I was hearing. The screams made it abundantly clear.” 

Language  

• Denny tells Lee, “You look like crap.” 
• Miles tells Lee, “I kicked his ass.” 
• During an argument, Jenny tells a guy, “My mom’s white, dumb-ass.” 
• A random student calls Lee a “bitch.”  
• Several times, someone is called a bitch.  
• When talking about the shooter, Kellie says, “I am the one who talked to the asshole.” 
• Other profanity is occasionally used, including crap, damn, and hell. 

Supernatural Content 

• The fictional game Dungeons and Dragons, which contains supernatural beings, is mentioned. “[Jenny] had no idea [her] mom was such a nerd, but it turns out she grew up playing Dungeons and Dragons and is a bit of a snob about fantasy.” 
• Jenny and Eden write a fictional comic that features magic. “Calliope is our baby. Our weird witch baby.”

Spiritual Content 

• The central conflict is the false story that Sarah declared her faith before dying. Sarah’s mother said, “She was here to remind us all of what a good Christian should be. Her story will inspire so many people.” 
• God and Jesus are referenced multiple times by various characters. For example, Sarah’s mother uses God as a comfort, saying, “I just have to keep reminding myself that God has a plan.” 
• Miles and Lee discuss heaven. Miles asks, “You don’t believe in heaven?” Lee replies by saying, “I mean, I want to. Most people around here do.” 
• The Virgil County Baptist Church is mentioned a few times. 
• Ashley discusses her complicated relationship with God. Before the shooting, she was going through a rough patch, and she didn’t understand why God wasn’t helping. “I saw my friends and classmates and even my own family not being as good as I was, not being the kind of Christians I thought they ought to be, but that didn’t seem to matter. They seemed happy, and I wasn’t.” 
• A priest confronts Lee, trying to get her to stop talking about Sarah. The priest says, “I hope you change your mind, but in the meantime, my congregation will be praying for you.” 
• Another student at Virgil County High School named Tara tells Lee, “Hell is exactly where [Lee’s] going.” 
• Lee and her mother are openly anti-religion. Lee says, “My lack of religious inclination comes from my mom. She was raised Baptist, but after the way her congregation treated her when she got pregnant at 16, she lost interest in organized religion.” 
• Kellie discusses her religion. Kellie went to “the tiny little Methodist church in the next town over. . . no one from school went there. I thought that it was safe.” She believed she wouldn’t face more ridicule than she already had, since no one from her school attended that church. 

by Rayna Burlison