The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry (2022) Movie Script
Hi. One ticket
for Alice Island, please?
One way or round-trip?
Round. Thank you.
I love the smell of books,
don't you?
They should make a perfume
of it.
Oh, the new Munro! How is it?
It's for school.
I love Munro,
but the only time I have
for pleasure reading is
when I'm on vacation.
I work for Knightley Press.
I'm their new sales rep.
Uh-huh.
I'm here to meet
with A.J. Fikry actually.
Who the hell are you?
Hi. I'm... I'm Amelia Loman.
Now, Mr. Fikry,
please ignore the cover.
This one
is my absolute favorite.
It is a memoir
by an eight-year-old
first-time writer.
I mean,
don't you just love that?
So, Leon Friedman got married
for the first time
at 78 years old.
And his bride died
three years later of cancer.
I know the descriptions sounds
pretty maudlin,
but the prose is precise
and funny, and
I will admit
I wept uncontrollably
on the train from New York
to Providence.
I know that this might seem
like a small book,
but readers could fall in love
with this
the same way they fell in love
with "Angela's Ashes"
or "Tuesdays with Morrie."
Is something wrong?
This is not for me.
That's exactly what I thought.
But if you just read the first
chapter there, you'll see...
This is not for me.
Okay. But maybe for some
of your readers?
Mother's Day is right around
the corner.
Not. For. Me.
No problem.
Okay, I'll just tell you
about something else.
What is the point?
Mr. Fikry...
it's true we don't really know
each other that well yet.
So, before I try to sell you
on anything else,
why don't you tell me
about what you like?
Like?
Yes.
I'd love to get a sense
of your taste.
How about I tell you
what I don't like?
Oh sure, why not?
I do not like post-modernism,
post-apocalyptic settings,
post-mortem narrators,
or magic realism.
I do not like children's books,
especially those with orphans,
and I prefer not to clutter
my shelves with young adult.
I am repulsed
by ghostwritten novels
by reality television stars,
celebrity picture books,
sports memoirs,
movie tie-in editions, and I
prefer not to stock series,
but the demands
of my pocketbooks require me to.
Above all, Ms. Loman,
I find slim literary memoirs
about little old men
whose little old wives
have died of cancer
to be absolutely intolerable.
No matter how well written
the sales rep claims they are.
No matter how many copies
you promise
I'll sell on Mother's Day.
Hmm.
Island Books is closing.
Please make your
non-existent purchases now.
Mr. Fikry.
Good evening, Miss Klock.
I think someone clogged
the toilet.
Cheers you, you piece of crap.
Shit!
Get the hell out of my way,
little girl!
Please somebody help me!
I've been robbed!
All right, Mr. Fikry.
Just tell me what happened.
Someone stole Tamerlane.
What's a Tamerlane?
It's a... a book.
It's a very valuable book.
Okay. To clarify,
someone shoplifted
a book from your store.
No, it's my book
from my personal collection.
It's an extremely
rare collection of poems
by Edgar Allan Poe.
So, its like your favorite book?
No, I don't even like it.
It's crap.
It's jejune crap.
I'm just trying
to understand here.
So, you don't like the book,
but it has sentimental value?
No sentimental value!
It's got great financial value.
I was planning to auction it off
in a couple of years
when the economy had had time
to improve.
Like I was planning
to close the shop
to retire on the proceeds.
If you don't mind me asking, why
did you
have that book at your house and
not in a bank vault?
I kept it in
a combination-locked glass case.
I thought it'd be safe enough.
So, did somebody break the case
or... or...
- No, I...
- Anyone know the combination?
Neither.
I wanted to get wasted
last night.
I took the book out
to look at it.
To look at it!
Poor excuse for company, I know.
Who else knows about this book?
Everyone.
Like everyone.
My wife's sister Ismay,
she teaches at the high school.
Sure, I know Ismay.
Yeah, she... she worries
about me since Nic...
Anyway,
Ismay thought it would be good
for business or educational
or some crap
if I put it on display
in the store.
So, I...
so, I put the case in the shop
all... all last summer.
So many people in the store.
- Mr. Fikry?
- I think I'm dying.
Mr. Fikry.
What you experienced today
was a panic attack.
It really felt like I was dying.
Why don't you tell me
something about your lifestyle?
Best, uh.
I'm 39 years old.
I'm not what you'd call
an alcoholic
but I like to drink
until I pass out
at least once a week.
I subsist on a diet
of frozen entrees.
I used to be a mediocre
long-distance runner,
but now I don't exercise at all.
I live alone
and I lack meaningful
personal relationships.
And since my wife died,
I hate my work.
You're going through a bear
of a time.
Start with exercise.
You'll feel better.
Okay.
Would you mind terribly?
I would be delighted.
What's your name?
Jill, like Jack and Jill
went up the hill.
Macy, like the store.
I've read all your books,
but I like this one the best.
Well, that is
the popular opinion,
Jill from the Hill.
I can't even express
how much it meant to me.
It's what made me
want to be a nurse.
Hm.
Dan,
I thought your wife was coming.
Hey, Ismay wasn't feeling well.
How're you holding up, old man?
I've lost my fortune, and the
doctor says I'm going to die.
Let's get drinks, yeah.
Hm.
Ooh, I love your outfit.
I'll... seriously
I love your outfit!
I mean, come on, did you see
that? That's ridiculous.
Yeah, I did.
Poe's a lousy writer, you know?
And 'Tamerlane', it's the worst.
It's a boring
Lord Bryon rip off.
It'd be one thing
if it was a first edition
of something decent, but...
I think you'd be glad
to get rid of it.
You know I absolutely loathe
collectible books.
And people getting all moony
over particular paper carcasses.
It's about the ideas, man.
The words. Huh?
You sir, are an idiot.
Hm.
Christie's Rare Books
Department.
Yeah, I'm with the Alice Island
Police Department.
We're looking for a copy
of Tamerlane.
You and every other rare book
collector in the world.
Shit!
I've never used this stuff
before.
Someone get a vacuum.
Who would even want
an old book anyway?
Doesn't everyone read an E?
Am I a suspect?
No, but you are one
of his only friends.
I'm just trying to get a sense
of
A.J. Fikry's state of mind.
Well, I'd say, not good.
He's depressed
and he basically drinks himself
to unconsciousness every night.
People do strange things
when they're drunk.
I mean, he could have set
the book on fire.
Do you think he did that?
I'm a novelist, and so it my
business to consider
all possibilities,
not just probabilities.
For instance, in my New York
Times Best selling novel,
The Children in the Apple Tree,
the nurse character...
Wait! Is this a spoiler?
Oh, it's a small one,
but I'm making a point.
I may want to read it someday,
so...
Understood.
Ismay Evans.
That's my maiden name.
Do I know you?
Uh, we went to school together.
We didn't really travel
in the same circles.
I'm Officer Lambiase.
Nick Lambiase.
Kids used to call me Nico.
Hm.
I was talking to your husband
about AJ Fikry about his book.
Well, I can't say
I'm terribly surprised.
- No?
- He's been quite careless
since my sister died.
And he isn't exactly nice
to people in town.
You mean he's got enemies?
I would just say he doesn't
have a lot of friends.
I worry about him.
Daniel and I both do.
When are you due?
January.
I guess it's pretty obvious.
Well, you look great.
Wait!
Um, what do you think happened
to the book?
AJ blacks out when he drinks,
and he's very self destructive.
I don't know
maybe he was sleep walking and
tossed it into the ocean.
Book's gone. Sorry.
You want a glass case?
What?
I used to keep the book
in there.
Well, maybe you'll find
something
better to put in there.
Yeah. Another book
worth $650,000?
I really doubt that.
I'll walk you out.
- What's it gonna be?
- Uh,
$26 seems like a lot.
You know I can get it
cheaper online, right?
Yeah, I do know that.
You should really
lower your prices,
if you want to be competitive.
Lower my prices.
I hadn't considered that before.
Are you being cheeky?
No, I'm thankful.
And at the next Island Books
shareholders' meeting,
I'll definitely raise
this innovative suggestion
of yours.
Between you and me, for a time
in the early aughties,
we'd given up on competition.
Which I thought was a mistake,
but my board decided
that competition was best left
to Olympic athletes,
kids in spelling bees,
and soft drink manufacturers.
These days, I'm glad to report
that Island Books is definitely
in the competition business
once again.
Who the hell are you?
Maya.
How old are you?
Two.
You're two?
Where's your mother?
Elephant.
Elephant?
Yes, elephant.
"To the owner
of the bookstore..."
Fuck!
To the Owner of the Bookstore,
this is Maya.
She's very smart,
exceptionally verbal
for 25 months,
and a sweet, good girl.
I want her to grow up
in a place with books
and among people who care
about those kinds of things.
I love her very much,
but I can no longer take care
of her.
Father cannot be in her life,
and I do not have a family
that can help.
I am desperate.
Yours, Maya's mother.
Mother left this for you.
Not for me specifically.
Like... like, generally.
For the owner of the store.
Which is... you.
Here's the thing.
It's 09:00 p.m. on a Friday.
Could place a call to DCF, but
with the snow and the weekend
and the ferry schedule...
I doubt they'll even make
it here by Monday.
Someone will have to watch Maya
over the weekend.
- Me and a couple of cops...
- No, it's fine. It's fine.
Just doesn't seem right
to keep a baby
in a police station.
What do you know
about child care?
Well, it's only for the weekend.
How hard can it be?
- A.J.?
- Hey. Hey, sorry to bother you.
Do you have any idea
what on earth
I should feed
a 25-month-old child?
It's the best I could do
on short notice.
Oh, it's perfect.
My kitchen is a fiasco.
I was up anyway. Couldn't sleep.
She must miss her mom.
I know.
Why didn't you leave her
at the police station?
That didn't seem right.
You're not thinking
of keeping it, are you?
Her, and no, of course not.
I'm only watching her
until Monday.
I suppose
the mom could show up by then
and change her mind.
Yeah.
Cover her up.
Hey!
Moustache.
You think I should shave it?
No.
I might look more youthful
without it?
No.
Okay.
We found her mother.
Who was she?
Harvard kid.
So, smart?
Only a few of them are smart.
I went to Princeton myself.
Scholarship.
State Championship Swimmer.
Liked bookstores, liked to read.
Poor. No family.
Foster kid.
22, with a 25-month-old.
Strange to me is
why she was on Alice Island
in the first place?
It's kind of a hassle
to get here, you know?
You really believe
she wasn't coming here
to see someone specific?
I've been thinking
about that, too.
Ah, maybe she didn't have a
plan of where she was going?
Come on, Lambiase.
You're a cop.
You can't really believe that.
Oh, what's your theory?
Well, I don't have a theory.
But I am a reader.
As a reader I believe
in narrative construction.
If a gun shows up in act one,
that gun better go off
in act three.
There aren't coincidences.
Well, that's in stories.
And in real life,
there's load of them.
Hm.
So, the lady from DCF
is coming for Maya on Monday.
And since the mother
didn't have any family
and the paternity is unknown,
they'll have to put her
in a foster home.
Oh, you said the mother
went through the foster system?
Suppose she thought her kid
stood a better chance
in a bookstore?
It's hard to say.
Well, it's moot, right?
Cause I can't adopt a child.
I can barely keep myself
together.
And I haven't slept
in two nights.
Hey, she looks nice
but she's a terrorist.
She's got bad taste in books.
Her conversation skills lack
to say the least.
And even if she were
Ira Glass,
it wouldn't matter
cause I'm poor.
Can't raise a baby
on books alone.
I don't want to surrender you
to the State of Massachusetts
looking like a miniature
Miss Havisham.
Sorry, she's a character
in Dickens.
Dickens.
Very good.
Just so you know, Dickens
was terribly sentimental.
Hm, he got paid by the word,
and it shows.
Waw.
So, tell me, uh Jenny,
how does a foster family
get pre approved?
Is it as easy as, say,
getting a department store
credit card?
No, of course.
There are more steps
to it than that.
Applications, home visits...
What I'm trying to say,
Jenny, is how do you make sure
you aren't placing
an innocent child
in the hands
of a complete psychopath?
Mr. Fikry, we certainly
don't start from the point of
view that...
I worry because
Maya is very bright
but she's also very trusting.
All our foster homes
have gone through
- an application process...
- I went to a series of
competitive Ivy League colleges,
with rigorous application
processes,
and it's not as if applications
kept all the idiots out.
And the foster home
is only temporary and...
See, the thing is,
the mother left me this note.
She really wanted me
to have her, so...
I really think
I should keep her.
But Mr. Fikry the letter
doesn't say you specifically.
It says, generally,
"the owner of the bookstore".
Who is me.
AJ.
Yes, AJ.
Daddy, Daddy.
AJ.
AJ!
AJ! AJ! AJ!
Awake! Downstairs!
Oh, yeah.
All right, guys.
Settle down.
You got your drinks?
- Hm.
- Okay.
We're here to celebrate Maya,
who's officially become a Fikry.
It's been a long 14 months.
You know, AJ didn't want
to have a party.
I was like, dude,
it's not a big deal.
You go to Costco.
You get some big muffins.
- [A few bottles of champagne.
- No big deal.]
You know, also uh,
I'm the Godfather.
So, you know that wasn't going
to happen without a party.
I'd like to raise a glass
to Ismay.
She's the Godmother. Thank you.
Ismay.
Oh, and since you're all here,
I'm starting a book club.
- Ah?
- Yeah.
For law enforcement officers.
Or people who are just
law enforcement enthusiasts.
It's open.
We'll be reading "Out of Sight"
by Elmore Leonard.
So, get a book from the store.
AJ's a dad, we need to keep
Island Books in business.
For Maya!
One, two, three, four,
five, six, seven, eight, nine!
Good morning, cherry tree!
Good morning, magazines!
Good morning, books!
Good morning, bookstore!
- Hi, Amy.
- Hi.
You're early, Miss Loman.
I brought you
some picture books.
- Thank you.
- You're welcome.
I haven't read all of these yet
so I really want to know
what you think, okay?
Okay.
So, ready to chat about
the spring list?
Oh God,
is it spring list time already?
It comes every year.
Yeah, come in.
Oh.
Read anything good lately?
Honestly, I haven't had
much time for reading
since I became a dad.
How did you get up here?
The first time
I saw Halley's Comet in 1986,
I was already old.
Halley's Comet
will return in 2061,
and scientists predict
it will be a better,
brighter appearance
than in 1986.
I will, needless to say,
be dead.
It isn't a sad thing.
Many of you will be dead, too.
Such is life.
Depending on when you were born,
you have a chance
of seeing Halley's Comet
twice in a lifetime.
But I was not born
at the right time for that.
Some of us live one-comet lives.
And this, I suppose,
must be enough.
Why are you crying?
I was reading.
- Hello?
- Oh, hi.
Amelia, this is AJ Fikry
from Island.
I wasn't expecting you
to answer.
Are we still on for two weeks
from now,
or do you have to cancel?
Oh no, nothing like that.
I was um,
planning on leaving you a
message, actually.
Hi, you have reached
the voicemail of Amelia Loman.
Beep.
Um...
Beep. Go ahead.
Leave your message.
Um okay, hi, Amelia.
This is AJ Fikry.
I just finished reading a book
that you recommended.
Oh yeah, which one?
That's odd.
Voice mail seems to be
talking back to me.
It was from several years back.
"The Late Bloomer"
by Leon Friedman.
Oh, don't go breaking
my heart, AJ.
That was my absolute favorite
from four winter lists ago.
No one wanted to read it.
I don't know if you remember,
but
you gave me "The Late Bloomer"
the first time we met.
Did I?
Would have been around
the time I started at Knightley.
Well, you know,
that literary memoirs
aren't really my thing,
but this was spectacular
in its small way.
Hm-mm. Go on.
Every word the right one
and exactly where it should be.
Oh, darn it.
What?
Missed my turn.
Oh well, that's all. I'll...
I'll let you get back
to the road.
I'm sorry it took me so long
to read it.
I begged everyone I knew
to read this book,
and no one would listen to me
except my mother.
Even she wasn't an easy sell.
Sometimes books don't find us
until the right time.
It's not much
consolation for Mr. Friedman.
I suppose not.
Hmm, well, Amelia,
I guess I'll see you
in a couple of weeks.
Oh, maybe next time
you will listen to me
when I tell you something's the
'best book
on the winter list'.
Yeah, probably not. I'm old, set
in my ways, contrary.
You're not that old.
Not compared to Mr. Friedman,
I guess.
Hm, maybe when you're in town
next week,
- have dinner or something.
- Sir, I'd like to purchase this.
- Just one second.
- Hmph.
Sorry, customers.
Stores have those.
Yeah sometimes.
It's annoying really.
So uh, dinner?
Right.
We cam discuss
the new winter list.
Of course.
Yes, of course. It's such a long
trip from Alice.
You'll be hungry. It's rude that
I haven't suggested it before.
Let's make it a late lunch then.
I'll need to catch
the last ferry back to Hyannis.
Pequods, like Moby Dick.
Do you like Moby Dick?
I hate it.
I don't say that
about many things.
Teachers assign it,
and there're parents are happy
because their kids are reading
something of quality.
But it's forcing kids
to read books like that
that makes them think
they hate reading.
I'm surprised you didn't cancel
when you saw the name
of the restaurant.
Oh, I thought about it.
Aarghh!
Ahoy, landlubbers.
Care for a themed cocktail?
One Queequeg, please.
Ah, okay.
Sir?
Just, a glass of whatever
your house red is.
Okay.
That's sad.
I bet you've gone
your whole life
without having a Queequeg
despite the fact
that you live here
and you sell books
and you probably even like
Moby Dick.
You're obviously a more
evolved person than I am.
Yeah, I can see that.
And after I have this cocktail,
my whole life's going to change.
One Queequeg for the lady.
- Oh.
- One glass of red
for the gentleman.
Thanks.
Look, a little shrimp through
a plastic anchor.
That is an unexpected delight.
Cheers.
Mm. Cheers.
Ooh.
So...
let's talk books.
Books.
Well, thank you again for lunch.
Next time it's on me.
Why don't I walk you
to the ferry?
All right.
If you don't mind me asking,
why was "The Late Bloomer"
your favorite book
from the list?
- You're a young...
- No, no, no. Not that young.
What I mean to say is
you probably haven't experienced
much of what Mr. Friedman
describes.
I look at you,
and after reading the book,
I wonder what made you
respond to it.
Mr. Fikry, that is a very
personal question.
Sorry.
The main reason I loved the book
was the quality of the writing,
of course.
Of course.
But that isn't enough.
Let's just say I'd been
on many, many bad dates
by the time "The Late Bloomer"
came across my desk.
I am a romantic person,
but these don't always seem
like romantic times to me.
The "Late Bloomer" is a book
about the possibility
of finding great love
at any age.
Sounds clich, I know.
And you? Why did you like it?
Quality of the prose.
No, we're not allowed
to say that, I thought.
You don't want to
hear my sad stories.
Sure, I do. I love sad stories.
My wife died
a couple of years ago,
and Friedman gets
at something specific
about what it is
to lose someone.
How it isn't one thing.
He writes about how you lose
and lose and lose.
It could have been
a popular book.
I know.
I'm thinking of having someone
read a passage
from it at my wedding.
You're getting married, Amelia.
Congratulations!
Who's the lucky fellow?
- His name is Brett Brewer.
- Hmm.
I had just about given up
when I met him online.
Tell me more.
He's in the military,
serving overseas in Afghanistan.
Oh, well done. You're marrying
an American hero.
I guess I am.
I hate those guys.
Well, they just make me feel
so inadequate.
Tell me something shitty
about him so I feel better.
Well, he's not home much.
Yeah, you must miss him.
I do.
Get a ton of reading done,
though.
That's good. Does he read, too?
No, actually.
No, he's not much of a reader.
That's kind of interesting.
I just mean, it's interesting
to be with someone whose, um...
whose interests
are so different from mine.
I don't know
why I keep saying 'interests.'
The point is, he is a good man.
And he's good to you,
that's what counts.
Hm.
Anyway, no one's perfect.
Someone probably made him
read "Moby Dick" in high school.
And your wife, was she a reader?
Mm-hm.
And a writer.
Hmm.
I wouldn't worry about it,
though.
Reading's overrated.
Look at all the good stuff
on television.
Hm.
Oh, darn it!
I think that's my ferry.
It was nice talking
with you, AJ.
I'll see you in March!
Looking forward to it.
Hey, don't wait four years
to read my books next time!
I won't!
AJ. There's something
kind of heroic
about being a bookseller.
There's also something
kind of heroic
about adopting a child!
Thank you, Amelia.
My friends call me Amy!
I think I've met someone.
Haha, good news.
Yeah. The problem is, she's
affianced to someone else.
- Ah, bad timing.
- Yeah.
You know, I've been a cop
for over 20 years.
Pretty much every bad thing
in life
is a result of bad timing.
And every good thing
is a result of good timing.
That seems terribly reductive.
Hey, it's good to know
your heart still works.
Want me to set you up
with someone?
Nah.
Come on, I know everyone
in town.
Yeah unfortunately,
it's a very small town.
So Lambiase says
you own the bookstore?
Hm.
Oh, do you read?
A ton actually.
Oh, great.
Mainly sports memoirs.
Yeah, they're my thing.
You know they're all
ghostwritten?
Yeah, so what?
These books... they're...
Look, my point is
they're essentially lies.
All of life's
in a sports memoir.
You practice hard, you succeed,
and then eventually your body
gives out and it's over.
Sounds like a latter-period
Philip Roth novel.
That's one of those things
you say to sound smart, right?
But, really,
you're trying to make
someone else feel stupid.
I'm not sure
I wanna see you again.
I'm sorry if I hurt your
feelings before.
The memoirs thing, I just...
Don't worry about it.
You can't help the way you are.
Maya, do you know how old I am?
No.
I'm 43.
Oh.
In all these years
I've learned that it's...
it's better to have loved
and lost
and it's better to be alone
than to be with someone
you don't really fancy.
Do you agree?
Sometimes, though,
I get tired of learning lessons.
I have a question.
Yes, beautiful.
Don't you ever go to work?
Uh, I'm at work right now.
You don't look like
you're working.
You look like you're reading.
Don't you have a place
that you go
where you have a job?
Hm mm. Come here,
I wanna show you something.
All right, look at this.
You see, this right here...
Who's that?
Daniel Parish.
Hm mm.
- You're a writer.
- Oh.
What is this about?
Ah, it's about the follies
of man.
It's a... it's a love story
and a tragedy.
That's very general.
Right, okay. It's about um,
a nurse
who has spent her whole life
taking care of other people.
She gets in a car accident,
and now the other people
have to take care of her
for the first time in her life.
That does not sound like
something I would read.
Well, it was on the New York
Times Bestseller List
for over a year.
Is Daniel Parish a good writer?
He is good,
but he's not my favorite.
That's what I thought.
- Let me answer it.
- Yeah.
Island Books, Maya speaking.
Hi, Maya.
Hi, Amy!
Did you read the book
I sent you?
Hey!
Amelia. Amelia, hello.
Hi, AJ. I'd like to have our
next meeting over video call.
- Is that okay?
- No, it's...
it's not a problem.
Maybe uh, next week?
Great. I'll send over details.
What?
Summer list time.
Okay, so Knightley has not one
but two short-story collections
on the summer...
Crutches?
Yeah.
Yeah, that's we are meeting
this way.
Did this stupid thing
of breaking my ankle
and now I'm stuck here
for the next six or seven weeks.
I'm sorry.
That's my own fault.
Galoshes are better for rain
than ice.
So, back to the list.
When is the wedding?
Or has it already happened yet?
It's off actually.
Amelia, I'm sorry to hear that.
Hm, happened a while ago.
Over Christmas.
What happened?
If you don't mind me asking.
Brett's a great guy,
but the sad truth is
we don't have very much
in common.
Shared sensibility does matter.
Okay, so a story I really love.
It has a murder mystery element
but...
What is that book?
- Which book?
- That... that book.
It's leaning on the lamp,
on the table behind you.
Hm, wouldn't you like to know.
It's my favorite.
It was a gift from my father
for my college graduation.
Huh. So, what is it?
If you ever come down
to Providence, I'll show you.
This isn't like a date, is it?
Uh...
I'm teasing. Come inside.
No, please. Sit. Let me.
Mm-hmm.
You were so mean to me
the first time we met.
I still haven't forgiven you,
you know?
Yeah, I'd hoped
you'd forgotten that.
I haven't.
My memory is very long, AJ.
I was awful.
But in my defense,
I was going through a bad time.
Told my mother about you.
She said that
you didn't sound like
very good boyfriend material.
I know. I'm not.
Sorry about that.
Because I like you enormously.
Do you wanna see
what that book is?
Which book?
The book in my office
that you asked me about.
Isn't that what you came to see?
My office is through my
bedroom, by the way.
Hm.
I'll show you the book
in the morning.
My ankle hurts, so
apologies if my seduction
lacks some of the subtlety
it might usually have.
Dear AJ, my mother likes to say
that novels have ruined me
for real men.
I find this insulting
because it implies
that I only read books
with classically
romantic heroes.
I don't mind
the occasional novel
with a romantic hero
but as you know by know,
my tastes are far more varied
than that.
One way or round trip?
Uh, round.
For instance, I adore Humbert
Humbert as a character
while accepting the fact
that he would make
an appalling boyfriend
or even casual acquaintance.
The same is true
for Holden Caulfield
and Misters Rochester and Darcy.
But I think where my mother
has a point is,
in so far as I tend to take in
an overly romantic view
of things.
And, this means
I have been known
to ignore the signs
that something won't work out.
So, while these last months
have been
some of the most romantic...
Ah, you'd been gone too long.
Only a week.
So, while I feel
a real connection with...
So, while I certainly enjoyed
our time together
and I loved to getting
to know Maya,
the reality is it takes me
five hours
to get to Alice Island,
if the traffic is good,
which it rarely is.
And, if the ferry is running
which it often is not,
I can't move from Providence,
and you can't move
from Alice Island.
The situation is irresolvable.
And maybe it isn't fair to Maya,
or to you, or to me
to continue on, on something
that is doomed to fail.
As my mother like to say,
"Amelia, you're 34 years old.
You don't have any more time
to waste in
impossible relationships."
She doesn't mean herself,
by the way. Ha-ha.
I find it difficult to say,
any of these things
when we're together.
When are you coming back?
About that, I probably
won't be able to see you
as much as this summer.
I'm traveling for work,
my mother is going
to Providence in August.
Uh, and I...
I could come and see you?
I really won't be around much.
Amelia, I'm sorry.
For what?
That I can't do more
of the driving.
I love you.
I love you, too.
She's gonna love it,
and I hope she says yes.
Well, she'd still be our friend
even if she says no.
Why would she say no?
Lots of reasons.
Your dad isn't exactly a catch.
Hey.
This okay with you, by the way?
Okay. Come on.
I'm pumped.
I've never met a writer before.
Daniel Parish.
Oh, yeah. Daniel Parish.
I always forget he's a writer.
Leon Friedman.
Novelist extraordinaire.
Pleased to meet you.
- Oh.
- You must be AJ Fikry.
Ah, actually this is AJ Fikry.
You must be AJ Fikry!
The gal at Knightley says
you love my book.
There's going to be liquor
at this event, yes?
Well, it is the afternoon
so we weren't planning on it,
but I am sure
I can procure some.
I thought he'd be different
somehow.
Authors never look like
their author photographs.
I'm 81 years old,
and statistically speaking,
I should have died
4.7 years ago.
My God, this is depressing.
You people really like this?
Hmm.
Oh.
Thanks.
Mmm. Aaah.
What's your favorite book?
Oh, don't know that I have one.
Why don't you tell me
what you'd like
for Christmas instead?
Christmas? Christmas isn't for
four months.
Well...
Wow, it's really great
to meet you.
My boyfriend
and I would probably
would not have gotten together
if it weren't for your book.
Ah, give me a hug.
Oh.
That's the power of fiction
for you.
Yeah, I suppose.
Only it isn't fiction, right?
It actually happened.
Oh yes, sweetheart. Of course.
Perhaps, Mr. Friedman meant
to say that
that is the power of narrative.
And perhaps Mr. Friedman
was trying to say
that a relationship based
on loving a book is
not likely to be much
of a relationship.
- Margaret Loman.
- Ah.
My spouse died a couple
of years ago, too.
Amelia, my daughter,
made me read your book
for my Widows
of Charleston Book Club.
Everyone loved it.
Oh, how nice.
How nice.
How...
Yes?
Oh God!
- Oh!
- I seem to have had
too much to drink.
Obviously.
I'm going to take Friedman
to the airport.
Ismay said she'd do it,
but I think
the only decent thing
- is for me to go with her.
- Hm, good man.
I'll watch Maya
and I'll clean up here.
I thought today
would be more romantic
than it turned out to be.
No, it's very romantic.
It's more romantic
than a lecherous old drunk
looking down my blouse?
AJ, we need to go.
That's me.
Hey uh, I don't think
I made a good impression
on your mother.
No one does.
I wouldn't worry too much
about it.
I love you.
AJ?
I can help.
Thank you.
You can get all the plastic cups
and napkins.
Was something wrong
with the writer?
The usual.
Oh, excuse me.
I can't say he was completely
what I was expecting.
What were you expecting?
Someone more intellectual,
I think.
- Hmm.
- That sounds really snobby.
That's probably not
the right word.
No, no. I...
Um, I know what you mean.
My expectations
were probably too high.
I work for his publisher.
It was my favorite thing
I ever sold, actually.
Why was it your favorite?
I had lost my dad right before,
and I guess something
in the voice
reminded me of him.
Also, there so many true,
true things in it.
They make the publishers
clean up after the reading?
No, I'm the bookstore owner's
girlfriend, too.
So, I'm just helping out.
Oh, he must be a huge fan
of the book
to bring Leon Friedman here
after all these years.
Yeah.
The truth is, he did it for me.
It was the first book
we loved together.
That's cute.
Kind of like
the first restaurant you go to
or the first song you danced to
or something.
Yeah, exactly.
Why don't you think
the book sold?
- "The Late Bloomer?"
- Hm.
It's competitive out there.
Sometimes even
when a book is good,
it just still doesn't work.
That must be hard.
Are you writing a book
or something?
I've tried, yes.
Amelia Loman.
Leonora Ferris.
Are you from Alice?
No, I just came in for the day.
For the reading.
Oh. You must be a big fan
of the book, too.
I know from experience
that Alice
is not the easiest place
in the world to get to.
No, it isn't.
No one travels without purpose.
Those who are lost wish
to be lost.
You're quoting
"The Late Bloomer."
It really was your favorite.
It was.
"When I was young,
I never felt young."
Something like that.
Do you remember the rest
of that quote?
- No.
- Oh,
writers don't remember
everything they write.
How could they?
It was nice talking to you.
You're him, aren't you?
You are Leon Friedman.
Not truly.
What does that mean?
A long time ago,
a girl wrote a novel,
and she tried to sell it,
but no one wanted it.
So, she thought it would
be easier
if she retitled the book
and called it a memoir.
Who was that man?
I um, called a casting office.
He usually plays Santa.
I don't understand.
Why do the reading?
Why go to the bother
and the expense?
Why risk it?
No, the book
had already flopped.
And sometimes you wanna know...
to see for yourself
that your work
has meant something to someone.
I feel a little fooled.
You're a good writer, you know?
I do now.
How was the drive?
The best thing I can say is
Mr. Friedman was passed out
for most of it.
I should get back to the hotel.
My mother and I have to leave
early tomorrow.
No. No, stay! Stay a bit.
Just think quick!
- Oh!
- Oh!
Ow! AJ what the fuck?
I'm sorry I was trying
to get you not to leave.
I thought
you were gonna catch it.
Oh... you aimed a little high.
It's uh... it's... it's for you.
Lets get married.
I know I'm stuck on this island.
I know I'm poor,
a single father.
And in a business with somewhat
diminishing returns.
I know
that your mother hates me,
that I'm obviously crap
at hosting author events-
Wait.
This is a strange proposal.
Lead with your strong stuff, AJ.
All I know is
when I read a book,
I want you to be reading it
at the same time.
I want to know
what Amelia would...
would think of it.
Okay.
Okay?
Okay.
Okay. Okay.
At the end of the day,
a man feels compelled to share
what he learned in this life.
It is the secret fear
that we are unlovable
that isolates us,
but it is only
because we are isolated
that we think
that we are un lovable.
So, here's my wish for you.
Some day, you do not know when,
you will be driving
down the road.
And some day,
you do not know when,
you will make a wrong turn.
At the end of the road,
when you're least expecting it,
a person will be there.
And this person
will be a city to you.
And in this city,
there will be love.
And in this city,
there will be sorrow.
And in this city,
there will be sickness,
and health,
and better, and worse.
And everything under the sun.
Ismay!
It's a little cold for a swim.
Yeah, a little. I just...
came up to clear my head.
Must be hard to see
AJ married to someone
other than your sister.
Yeah, but Amelia seems lovely.
The thing about weddings is
it can make a person
feel real lonely.
Here.
You took that turn
a little fast.
I don't love you anymore.
You always get like this
at weddings.
You're not a good man.
I'm complex.
Maybe I'm not good, but I'm
certainly not the worst.
Know you're bad.
And what's worse,
is you've made me bad.
Ismay, this is an insane place
to park.
Every time I see her
with AJ and Amelia,
I'm sick to my stomach.
Because she should
have been ours.
What?
If you had done the right thing,
she'd be ours.
I know Marian Wallace
was your girlfriend.
That isn't true.
And I know that she left Maya
for you!
If you thought that was true,
why didn't you do something?
I was pregnant.
I lost the baby
but I was pregnant.
And if you had just come to me,
I would have adopted her,
Daniel.
I would have forgiven you
and I would have taken her in.
And she would have been ours.
But Marian Wallace
was not my girlfriend.
How stupid do you think
that I am?
She was a girl
who came to a reading
and a girl I slept with once.
I mean, how could I even be sure
the child was mine? Hmm?
Every last bit of love
I had for you is gone.
I still love you.
I think I'm okay.
Are you okay?
Oh, my leg! I think it's broken.
Oh, it's bad...
Ismay, you have to drive!
"In The Children
in the Apple Tree,"
the main character
is in a fatal car accident.
I'd struggled writing it.
Everything I knew
about fatal car accidents
came from books I'd read.
And I was never really happy
with what I'd written.
The passage hadn't been
as bad as I thought.
Oh, Daniel.
I thought you were gonna wear
the dress.
Sorry, Amy. Seemed too fancy.
Welcome, my friends and fellow
literature enthusiasts,
to the 55th Annual Island County
High School Short Story Contest.
You all are in
for a treat tonight!
I'd like to congratulate
our ten semi-finalists,
who represent the best young
minds of Island County.
Now, onto our three finalists.
From Alice Island High School,
"My Grandmother's Hands"
written by John Furness.
"My Grandmother's Hands."
When I was young, I didn't
realize that people got old.
I thought some people
were just born old, and
some people
were just born young...
"The Journey" by Virginia Kim.
"The Journey."
The girl did not know
that it would be the last time
she would see her mother
until she was on the plane.
She had never been
on a plane before.
Our last finalist
is also from Alice Island High
School.
"A Day at the Beach"
by Maya T. Fikry.
Yeah! That's my goddaughter.
It's actually
"A Trip to the Beach."
Sorry, what did I say?
You said, "A Day at the Beach,"
which is close,
but it means something
completely different.
I stand corrected.
"A Trip to the Beach."
Mary is running late.
She has a private room,
but she shares the bathroom
with six other people.
It seems like someone's
always using it.
She owed her money.
It terrified her
to think how much.
She felt as if she had
been running
for the better part
of two years.
Every part of her body
was tired.
And yes, Mary knew
she was a disappointment.
She could see it in
the professor's kind,
disinterested...
What would be left? Nothing.
The end of some credit cards
could cover the groceries...
To have lowered herself
to return to this place,
to this woman...
she had barely escaped
the first time.
This dingy gray house
felt like a trap.
The baby, she thought,
had so few things
and so many things.
And every year,
she would need so many more.
She wasn't sure if the credit
card would go through,
but then it did.
It was just before Christmas,
and the train station
was filled with families
- and presents and good cheer...
- Wake up. She's almost finished.
And Mary had never felt...
I haven't been asleep.
Just imagining. It's very vivid.
Mary smiles brightly.
"I thought I would take a trip
to the beach," she says.
"The baby loves the beach."
"Isn't it a little cold
for the beach?" the girl asked.
When she gets to Alice Island,
the first place Mary sees
is a bookstore.
She goes inside
so that she and the baby
can warm up.
A man is at the counter.
That's you!
He has a very grumpy demeanour.
I'm looking for something
to read.
What kind of books do you like?
Oh, all kinds.
I basically like them better
than people.
Me too.
My favorite kind of book
is where a character
has hardships
but overcomes them in the end.
It's silly probably.
I know life isn't like that.
Maybe that's why
it's your favorite?
Maybe.
- Oh, I have the perfect...
- It just came in. One sec.
Miss?
He leaves the book
on the counter
just in case Mary ever decided
to come back.
Mary is on the beach,
but the baby is not with her.
She used to swim on a swim team.
She was good enough to win the
state's championship
in high school.
That day, the water is cold,
and Mary is out of practice.
She swims out
past the lighthouse,
and she doesn't swim back.
Great job, Maya!
I am going to frame
that certificate.
Whatever. It's just third.
And your story was amazing.
Seriously.
Thanks, Amy.
Wasn't it, AJ?
- Just wait.
- Dad, I'm really...
These things are never fair.
People like what they like,
and that's the great
and terrible thing.
It's about personal taste
and a certain set of people
on a certain day.
For instance, two out of the
three finalists were women,
which may have tipped
the scales toward the male.
Maybe one
of the judges' grandmothers
died last week,
which made that story
particularly effective.
One never knows.
But here's what I do know.
"A Trip to the Beach"
by Maya Tamerlane Fikry,
that was written by a writer.
I know it's dumb,
just really wanted to win.
I know.
Yeah, okay, but what the heck
happened to the violin?
I mean,
did I miss something here?
A priceless Stradivarius
doesn't just disappear
out of thin air.
Maybe that's the writer's point
that the violin's not the point?
Of course, it's the point.
Maybe the point is
how the violin
affects everybody's lives?
Oh, boo.
Boooo.
Back me up here, AJ.
You don't always have to know
who stole the violin.
Man, in my experience,
a book is more satisfying
to readers if you do.
- Oh!
- Thank you!
Though although I don't mind
ambiguity myself.
Traitor!
Lambiase, do you even read
the book?
Yeah, I've read this book twice.
Once, I put it on the chief's...
- Hi!
- Hey.
I'm gonna need 50 copies
of "Our Town."
It's a classic.
I did like it. Judgment free.
If you look at her picture,
she's clearly saying,
"You're never gonna find out
where the damn violin was."
She does have quite a smirk
on her, though.
She does, she does.
What group is this again?
Chief's Choice.
So, what are you doing
when you're not being a cop?
Well, believe it or not,
I read a lot.
I mean, maybe you
wouldn't think it was that much.
I know you teach English.
What do you read?
A little bit of everything.
I started out with crime novels.
Pretty predictable, that.
I mean I'm a cop.
Did you ever read
any of Daniel's books?
One. The first one.
Did you like it?
Not my cup of tea.
It was very well written though.
Do you miss your husband?
The best parts of him
were in his books.
What do you like to read?
Plays, the odd bit of poetry.
There's the books
that I teach every year.
They're like old friends to me.
But, if I'm choosing something
just for me,
something new...
I'd say my favorite
kind of character
is a woman in a faraway place.
Like India, or Bangkok.
She's just left her husband,
or maybe she never had a husband
because she knew, wisely,
that the married life
was not for her.
I like when she has
multiple lovers.
And I like when she wears hats
to shield her fair skin from the
sun.
I like descriptions of hotels
and
suitcases with stickers on them.
And a little romance,
but not too much.
The story is period.
Maybe a war,
but in the background.
Not a lot of bloodshed.
A little sex,
but not too graphic.
And no children.
Cause they usually spoil
the story for me.
I don't have any.
For I don't mind them
in real life.
I just don't want
to read about them.
An ending could be happy or sad.
I don't really care anymore
as long as it's earned.
And then she can settle down and
open her own little business,
or she can drown herself
in the ocean.
Hey.
I'm gonna make you breakfast.
Have you ever considered
not having a moustache?
If it bothers you, it's gone.
No, I like it.
I've been a cop
for almost 30 years.
Sometimes it's hard
to stop being a cop.
I had overly focused
on the details of things.
Writers and cops are the same
that way.
Good book, bad book.
It's the details
that tell the story.
I'm not bragging but I can
always solve a
solve a story before it's done.
I might be a better reader
than a cop.
Answer the mysteries.
Usually, the thing
that's out of place.
But sometimes it's the things
in plain sight
that you don't allow yourself
to see.
It's nice to have someone
to cook for.
Smells great.
The difference between a cop
and a writer
is that cops
have to see everything.
Writers get to choose
what to see
and what to ignore.
Hey, can you stop at the store
on your way home?
We need Drain-o...
- Drain-o.
- Sponges...
- Sponges.
- Grapes, if they have them.
Grapes.
Yeah, I'll get them
if they have them.
- Okay.
- I love you.
I love you, too.
Oh...
Would you mind spelling
that for me?
I like to Google things.
Tell me a good cop story.
You mean a story about
a good cop
or an interesting story
about a police officer.
It's up to you.
I wanna hear something amusing
to distract me from my problems.
What problems? You have like the
perfect wife.
The perfect kid. Good business.
I'll tell you after.
Let me think.
So, about 15 years ago,
there's this kid,
goes to Alicetown.
Hadn't been to school
in a month.
Well, the parents were
at their wits' ends.
So, I decided to follow the kid
for a day.
After a while,
we get to this building
I've never been in before.
Round the corner up uh,
Main and Parker.
You know where am I?
You're at the library.
Bingo!
So, I didn't read much
back then.
I follow him up the stairs
to a library carrel in the back
and I'm thinking,
he's gotta be doing
drugs back there, right?
It's the perfect place.
Isolated.
But you know what he's got?
Uh, books I'd imagine.
I mean that's the obvious thing.
One thick book.
He's in the middle
of reading "Infinite Jest."
Have you ever read of it?
Now, you're making this up.
He's reading "Infinite Jest."
He says he can't read it at home
because he's got five siblings
to babysit.
He can't read it at school cause
his
buddies will make fun of him.
So, he skips school
to read in peace.
This book takes a lot
of concentration.
He says. "Listen, hombre,"
he says, "there's nothing
for me in school."
Everything is in this book.
I'm guessing, he's Hispanic, by
your use of the word hombre.
So, I haul his ass
back to school.
And the principal asks
what should his punishment be.
And I ask him how long
is it gonna take him
to finish his book?
He says, "A couple of weeks."
So, I suggest,
two-week library suspension
for delinquency.
You...
You're definitely
making this up.
Admit it.
What...
The troubled youth
did not skip school
to read "Infinite Jest."
I'm not making it up, AJ.
Yeah, really.
Are you kidding?
I swear to God.
Oh, God...
I was just...
I wanted to...
you seemed depressed.
I wanted to give you a story
with a little uplift.
Ah, thanks man.
Thanks very much.
So, what did you want
to tell me, by the way?
I want you to know I love you.
And I don't judge you
for anything
you might have done in the past.
I know about the bag
in the closet.
I know that the book's in there.
I don't know how it got there
and I don't need to know either.
The book is ruined.
But even a damaged Tamerlane
must still be worth something.
AJ and Amy need the money.
Why do they need the money?
AJ has cancer.
The way I see it, we wipe the
book of fingerprints,
put it in an envelope,
and return it.
No one has to know
where or who it came from.
How long have you known?
Since the first time
I came to your house.
And you weren't upset?
You didn't turn me in?
It's none of my business, Izzie.
I didn't come to your home
as an officer of the law.
Shouldn't be going through
your stuff.
I figured there must
have been a story.
I wanna tell you what happened.
I don't need to know.
I want you to know.
The first time
that Marian Wallace
came to see me,
I was five months pregnant.
She had Maya with her,
the baby was about two.
And she said that,
"Maya was Daniel's daughter."
And I said...
And I'm not proud of this...
"How do I know you're
not lying?"
You think you're the first one
to come around here,
and say that
you've had Daniel's child.
She kept apologizing.
She said, "The baby
doesn't have to a part
of Daniel Parish's life."
She kept calling him
by his first and last name.
Cause she was a fan, you see.
The baby doesn't have to be
in Daniel Parish's life.
We won't ever bother you again,
I swear to God.
We just need a little money td.
Mama, mama.
To move on.
He said he would help, and now I
can't find him anywhere.
Mama, mama, mama...
He's travelling.
I'll talk to him
and see what I can do.
I talked to Daniel that night
on the phone.
It was a good call, and I didn't
bring up Marian Wallace.
I'm gonna be a changed man
once that baby's here.
I had heard that before.
No, I'm serious.
I'm definitely
gonna travel less.
I'm gonna stay at home,
I'll write more,
I decided right thenu
andand there...
that I would take care of the
problem with Marian Wallace.
I would find a way
to buy her off.
Down the hill, my sister had
been dead for over a year,
and her husband was steadily
drinking himself to death.
Hello, dead wife.
Out of obligation to her,
I would check on AJ some nights.
Come on.
People always thought
we were rich.
But Daniel spent every dollar
we made.
I saw Tamerlane that night.
And I thought...
this could solve everything.
The next day, everyone
is looking for Tamerlane.
Oh hey, I'm looking
for Marian Wallace.
Thank you.
But I've gone into Cambridge.
Here.
You can sell it.
It's worth a lot of money.
Is it hot?
No, it belongs to Daniel,
and he wants you to have it,
but you can never say
where you got it.
You can take it
to an auction house,
or a rare-books dealer.
Just claim you found it
in a used-books bin.
I don't hear from Marian
Wallace again for a while,
and I think
maybe that's the end of it.
But of course, it isn't.
She says she's gone
to every auction house
and rare book dealer
in the Boston area,
and none of them want to deal
with the book
because it doesn't have
a provenance.
And the cops have been calling
about a stolen copy
of Tamerlane.
What am I supposed to do
with this?
Have you ever read "Tamerlane",
Mrs. Parish?
It's so sad.
It's about this
Turkish conqueror who
trades in the love of his life,
this poor peasant girl,
for power.
Do you fancy yourself
some poor peasant girl,
and I'm the mean wife
who is keeping you
from the love of your life?
No.
And the worst of it is,
I knew what I was doing.
He came to my college
for a reading.
I loved his book,
and when I slept with him.
I had read his author biography
a hundred times
and I knew that he was married.
I've made so many mistakes.
I can't help you.
I'm thinking I'll just slip
into AJ's apartment tomorrow
or the next day and return it.
That's when I notice...
The way I see it,
you saved AJ Fikry's life
by stealing that manuscript.
What kind of cop are you?
The old kind.
Hey.
This was leaning on your door.
Hmm. Probably another galley.
Don't say that.
Could be the next big thing.
So, what's...
what's good in crime?
I need something new
for Chief's Choice.
Hmm.
Maybe this?
Smart, sexy, and spell binding.
Yeah.
Lot 2200.
A last-minute addition
to this afternoon's auction
and a rare opportunity
for the vintage
books connoisseur.
Tamerlane and Other Poems
by Edgar Allan Poe.
Written when Poe was 18
and attributed to 'A Bostonian.'
Only 50 printed at the time.
Tamerlane
will be the crown jewel
in any serious
rare books collection.
This copy shows some wear
on the spine
and some markings of crayon
on the cover.
This damage should not
in any way spoil the beauty
or diminish the rarity
of the object,
and this cannot be overstated.
Let the bidding begin
at $ 20,000.
Do I see 20,000? I see 20,000.
Do I see 25? 25, 25, 25...
I see 25!
Do I see 30? 30, 30, 30...
"The Late Bloomer" really
was a bunch of hokum.
Do you remember
when Freedman writes
how you can't truly describe
a hospital room?
When the person you love
is in it
that it's too painful
to be described?
How did we ever find
that poetic?
No, seriously,
I'm disgusted with us.
At this stage in my life,
I'm with every person
who never wanted to read
that book.
I'm with the designer
who put the feet
and flowers on the cover.
Because you know what?
You can describe
a hospital room.
It's gray.
And the art is the worst art
that you've ever seen.
And everything smells like
you're trying to cover up
the smell of piss.
Amy...
you loved "The Late Bloomer."
Yeah, but I didn't want to be
in some stupid play version
of it in my 40s.
Hey.
You really think I should have
this surgery?
Yes, I do.
But is it worth it
for maybe two more years
that are likely to be crappy?
- It is.
- Mr. Fikry...
Just...
I love you.
I want to leave you with
something more
cleverer than that,
but it's all I know.
Mr. Fikry, it's time.
Dad.
In the last days
of the bookseller's life,
reading became difficult.
Novels had become impossible.
If he tried very hard,
he could still make it
through a short story.
The daughter asked him,
if he was afraid.
"Not of dying," he said,
but a little of this part
I'm in.
Every day there is less of me.
But you're here right now
and so I am glad to be here.
Even without books.
Shall I read to you, Dad?
Hm.
Ah, said Dolly,
with soothing gravity.
Said the night and the morning,
and the sleeping and the waking,
and the rain in the harvest.
One goes and the other comes.
And we know nothing,
how or where.
Dad?
Dad...
Who the hell are you?
Maya.
Good morning, cherry tree!
Good morning, bookstore!
Why are you crying?
I was reading.
"A Trip to the Beach"
by Maya Tamerlane Fikry.
And that was written
by a writer.
And while I can't say
it was a happily ever after,
it was the end.
I'm not here.
I need to ask your opinion
about something.
I'm thinking about taking
a new job.
It would mean a lot less travel,
a little more money.
And we could spend
more time together
because I wouldn't be
on the road so much.
You mean we'll leave Alice?
It's not that far.
It's just New York.
We can come back
anytime we want.
I know it's impossible
to get here.
It is impossible.
I won't take it
if you don't want me to.
I know how much you love
this place.
I love this place, too.
Okay.
I need to see your face.
Okay?
What will happen to the store?
End of an era.
Yeah.
Amelia said she tried
to get someone to run it but...
Here's a crazy thought.
What if you and I took it over?
In this economy,
that is a crazy thought.
Probably so.
You want to get something
to eat?
Yeah.
But what if we did?
I mean, I've got savings
and a pretty good pension
about to come in,
and so do you.
AJ said the summer people
bought a lot of books.
The summer people
have E-readers now.
That's true.
- Thank you.
- It is.
We could open a cafe, too.
That would probably help
with the bottom line.
AJ used to talk about that
all the time.
Turn the basement
into a theatre space.
That way, the author events
don't have to happen
right in the middle
of the store.
Your theater background
would be great for that.
Are you sure you're up for this?
We aren't super young.
But we're not old yet, either.
I've lived in Alice
my whole life.
It's the only place
that I've ever known.
It's a nice place,
I intend to keep it that way.
A place ain't a place
without a bookstore, Izzie.
Hi there. Um, one for Alice
Island, please.
- One-way or round trip?
- Round trip.
- Awsome, thank you so much!
- Thank you.
Welcome.
Mr. Lambiase.
Have I got a book for you!
for Alice Island, please?
One way or round-trip?
Round. Thank you.
I love the smell of books,
don't you?
They should make a perfume
of it.
Oh, the new Munro! How is it?
It's for school.
I love Munro,
but the only time I have
for pleasure reading is
when I'm on vacation.
I work for Knightley Press.
I'm their new sales rep.
Uh-huh.
I'm here to meet
with A.J. Fikry actually.
Who the hell are you?
Hi. I'm... I'm Amelia Loman.
Now, Mr. Fikry,
please ignore the cover.
This one
is my absolute favorite.
It is a memoir
by an eight-year-old
first-time writer.
I mean,
don't you just love that?
So, Leon Friedman got married
for the first time
at 78 years old.
And his bride died
three years later of cancer.
I know the descriptions sounds
pretty maudlin,
but the prose is precise
and funny, and
I will admit
I wept uncontrollably
on the train from New York
to Providence.
I know that this might seem
like a small book,
but readers could fall in love
with this
the same way they fell in love
with "Angela's Ashes"
or "Tuesdays with Morrie."
Is something wrong?
This is not for me.
That's exactly what I thought.
But if you just read the first
chapter there, you'll see...
This is not for me.
Okay. But maybe for some
of your readers?
Mother's Day is right around
the corner.
Not. For. Me.
No problem.
Okay, I'll just tell you
about something else.
What is the point?
Mr. Fikry...
it's true we don't really know
each other that well yet.
So, before I try to sell you
on anything else,
why don't you tell me
about what you like?
Like?
Yes.
I'd love to get a sense
of your taste.
How about I tell you
what I don't like?
Oh sure, why not?
I do not like post-modernism,
post-apocalyptic settings,
post-mortem narrators,
or magic realism.
I do not like children's books,
especially those with orphans,
and I prefer not to clutter
my shelves with young adult.
I am repulsed
by ghostwritten novels
by reality television stars,
celebrity picture books,
sports memoirs,
movie tie-in editions, and I
prefer not to stock series,
but the demands
of my pocketbooks require me to.
Above all, Ms. Loman,
I find slim literary memoirs
about little old men
whose little old wives
have died of cancer
to be absolutely intolerable.
No matter how well written
the sales rep claims they are.
No matter how many copies
you promise
I'll sell on Mother's Day.
Hmm.
Island Books is closing.
Please make your
non-existent purchases now.
Mr. Fikry.
Good evening, Miss Klock.
I think someone clogged
the toilet.
Cheers you, you piece of crap.
Shit!
Get the hell out of my way,
little girl!
Please somebody help me!
I've been robbed!
All right, Mr. Fikry.
Just tell me what happened.
Someone stole Tamerlane.
What's a Tamerlane?
It's a... a book.
It's a very valuable book.
Okay. To clarify,
someone shoplifted
a book from your store.
No, it's my book
from my personal collection.
It's an extremely
rare collection of poems
by Edgar Allan Poe.
So, its like your favorite book?
No, I don't even like it.
It's crap.
It's jejune crap.
I'm just trying
to understand here.
So, you don't like the book,
but it has sentimental value?
No sentimental value!
It's got great financial value.
I was planning to auction it off
in a couple of years
when the economy had had time
to improve.
Like I was planning
to close the shop
to retire on the proceeds.
If you don't mind me asking, why
did you
have that book at your house and
not in a bank vault?
I kept it in
a combination-locked glass case.
I thought it'd be safe enough.
So, did somebody break the case
or... or...
- No, I...
- Anyone know the combination?
Neither.
I wanted to get wasted
last night.
I took the book out
to look at it.
To look at it!
Poor excuse for company, I know.
Who else knows about this book?
Everyone.
Like everyone.
My wife's sister Ismay,
she teaches at the high school.
Sure, I know Ismay.
Yeah, she... she worries
about me since Nic...
Anyway,
Ismay thought it would be good
for business or educational
or some crap
if I put it on display
in the store.
So, I...
so, I put the case in the shop
all... all last summer.
So many people in the store.
- Mr. Fikry?
- I think I'm dying.
Mr. Fikry.
What you experienced today
was a panic attack.
It really felt like I was dying.
Why don't you tell me
something about your lifestyle?
Best, uh.
I'm 39 years old.
I'm not what you'd call
an alcoholic
but I like to drink
until I pass out
at least once a week.
I subsist on a diet
of frozen entrees.
I used to be a mediocre
long-distance runner,
but now I don't exercise at all.
I live alone
and I lack meaningful
personal relationships.
And since my wife died,
I hate my work.
You're going through a bear
of a time.
Start with exercise.
You'll feel better.
Okay.
Would you mind terribly?
I would be delighted.
What's your name?
Jill, like Jack and Jill
went up the hill.
Macy, like the store.
I've read all your books,
but I like this one the best.
Well, that is
the popular opinion,
Jill from the Hill.
I can't even express
how much it meant to me.
It's what made me
want to be a nurse.
Hm.
Dan,
I thought your wife was coming.
Hey, Ismay wasn't feeling well.
How're you holding up, old man?
I've lost my fortune, and the
doctor says I'm going to die.
Let's get drinks, yeah.
Hm.
Ooh, I love your outfit.
I'll... seriously
I love your outfit!
I mean, come on, did you see
that? That's ridiculous.
Yeah, I did.
Poe's a lousy writer, you know?
And 'Tamerlane', it's the worst.
It's a boring
Lord Bryon rip off.
It'd be one thing
if it was a first edition
of something decent, but...
I think you'd be glad
to get rid of it.
You know I absolutely loathe
collectible books.
And people getting all moony
over particular paper carcasses.
It's about the ideas, man.
The words. Huh?
You sir, are an idiot.
Hm.
Christie's Rare Books
Department.
Yeah, I'm with the Alice Island
Police Department.
We're looking for a copy
of Tamerlane.
You and every other rare book
collector in the world.
Shit!
I've never used this stuff
before.
Someone get a vacuum.
Who would even want
an old book anyway?
Doesn't everyone read an E?
Am I a suspect?
No, but you are one
of his only friends.
I'm just trying to get a sense
of
A.J. Fikry's state of mind.
Well, I'd say, not good.
He's depressed
and he basically drinks himself
to unconsciousness every night.
People do strange things
when they're drunk.
I mean, he could have set
the book on fire.
Do you think he did that?
I'm a novelist, and so it my
business to consider
all possibilities,
not just probabilities.
For instance, in my New York
Times Best selling novel,
The Children in the Apple Tree,
the nurse character...
Wait! Is this a spoiler?
Oh, it's a small one,
but I'm making a point.
I may want to read it someday,
so...
Understood.
Ismay Evans.
That's my maiden name.
Do I know you?
Uh, we went to school together.
We didn't really travel
in the same circles.
I'm Officer Lambiase.
Nick Lambiase.
Kids used to call me Nico.
Hm.
I was talking to your husband
about AJ Fikry about his book.
Well, I can't say
I'm terribly surprised.
- No?
- He's been quite careless
since my sister died.
And he isn't exactly nice
to people in town.
You mean he's got enemies?
I would just say he doesn't
have a lot of friends.
I worry about him.
Daniel and I both do.
When are you due?
January.
I guess it's pretty obvious.
Well, you look great.
Wait!
Um, what do you think happened
to the book?
AJ blacks out when he drinks,
and he's very self destructive.
I don't know
maybe he was sleep walking and
tossed it into the ocean.
Book's gone. Sorry.
You want a glass case?
What?
I used to keep the book
in there.
Well, maybe you'll find
something
better to put in there.
Yeah. Another book
worth $650,000?
I really doubt that.
I'll walk you out.
- What's it gonna be?
- Uh,
$26 seems like a lot.
You know I can get it
cheaper online, right?
Yeah, I do know that.
You should really
lower your prices,
if you want to be competitive.
Lower my prices.
I hadn't considered that before.
Are you being cheeky?
No, I'm thankful.
And at the next Island Books
shareholders' meeting,
I'll definitely raise
this innovative suggestion
of yours.
Between you and me, for a time
in the early aughties,
we'd given up on competition.
Which I thought was a mistake,
but my board decided
that competition was best left
to Olympic athletes,
kids in spelling bees,
and soft drink manufacturers.
These days, I'm glad to report
that Island Books is definitely
in the competition business
once again.
Who the hell are you?
Maya.
How old are you?
Two.
You're two?
Where's your mother?
Elephant.
Elephant?
Yes, elephant.
"To the owner
of the bookstore..."
Fuck!
To the Owner of the Bookstore,
this is Maya.
She's very smart,
exceptionally verbal
for 25 months,
and a sweet, good girl.
I want her to grow up
in a place with books
and among people who care
about those kinds of things.
I love her very much,
but I can no longer take care
of her.
Father cannot be in her life,
and I do not have a family
that can help.
I am desperate.
Yours, Maya's mother.
Mother left this for you.
Not for me specifically.
Like... like, generally.
For the owner of the store.
Which is... you.
Here's the thing.
It's 09:00 p.m. on a Friday.
Could place a call to DCF, but
with the snow and the weekend
and the ferry schedule...
I doubt they'll even make
it here by Monday.
Someone will have to watch Maya
over the weekend.
- Me and a couple of cops...
- No, it's fine. It's fine.
Just doesn't seem right
to keep a baby
in a police station.
What do you know
about child care?
Well, it's only for the weekend.
How hard can it be?
- A.J.?
- Hey. Hey, sorry to bother you.
Do you have any idea
what on earth
I should feed
a 25-month-old child?
It's the best I could do
on short notice.
Oh, it's perfect.
My kitchen is a fiasco.
I was up anyway. Couldn't sleep.
She must miss her mom.
I know.
Why didn't you leave her
at the police station?
That didn't seem right.
You're not thinking
of keeping it, are you?
Her, and no, of course not.
I'm only watching her
until Monday.
I suppose
the mom could show up by then
and change her mind.
Yeah.
Cover her up.
Hey!
Moustache.
You think I should shave it?
No.
I might look more youthful
without it?
No.
Okay.
We found her mother.
Who was she?
Harvard kid.
So, smart?
Only a few of them are smart.
I went to Princeton myself.
Scholarship.
State Championship Swimmer.
Liked bookstores, liked to read.
Poor. No family.
Foster kid.
22, with a 25-month-old.
Strange to me is
why she was on Alice Island
in the first place?
It's kind of a hassle
to get here, you know?
You really believe
she wasn't coming here
to see someone specific?
I've been thinking
about that, too.
Ah, maybe she didn't have a
plan of where she was going?
Come on, Lambiase.
You're a cop.
You can't really believe that.
Oh, what's your theory?
Well, I don't have a theory.
But I am a reader.
As a reader I believe
in narrative construction.
If a gun shows up in act one,
that gun better go off
in act three.
There aren't coincidences.
Well, that's in stories.
And in real life,
there's load of them.
Hm.
So, the lady from DCF
is coming for Maya on Monday.
And since the mother
didn't have any family
and the paternity is unknown,
they'll have to put her
in a foster home.
Oh, you said the mother
went through the foster system?
Suppose she thought her kid
stood a better chance
in a bookstore?
It's hard to say.
Well, it's moot, right?
Cause I can't adopt a child.
I can barely keep myself
together.
And I haven't slept
in two nights.
Hey, she looks nice
but she's a terrorist.
She's got bad taste in books.
Her conversation skills lack
to say the least.
And even if she were
Ira Glass,
it wouldn't matter
cause I'm poor.
Can't raise a baby
on books alone.
I don't want to surrender you
to the State of Massachusetts
looking like a miniature
Miss Havisham.
Sorry, she's a character
in Dickens.
Dickens.
Very good.
Just so you know, Dickens
was terribly sentimental.
Hm, he got paid by the word,
and it shows.
Waw.
So, tell me, uh Jenny,
how does a foster family
get pre approved?
Is it as easy as, say,
getting a department store
credit card?
No, of course.
There are more steps
to it than that.
Applications, home visits...
What I'm trying to say,
Jenny, is how do you make sure
you aren't placing
an innocent child
in the hands
of a complete psychopath?
Mr. Fikry, we certainly
don't start from the point of
view that...
I worry because
Maya is very bright
but she's also very trusting.
All our foster homes
have gone through
- an application process...
- I went to a series of
competitive Ivy League colleges,
with rigorous application
processes,
and it's not as if applications
kept all the idiots out.
And the foster home
is only temporary and...
See, the thing is,
the mother left me this note.
She really wanted me
to have her, so...
I really think
I should keep her.
But Mr. Fikry the letter
doesn't say you specifically.
It says, generally,
"the owner of the bookstore".
Who is me.
AJ.
Yes, AJ.
Daddy, Daddy.
AJ.
AJ!
AJ! AJ! AJ!
Awake! Downstairs!
Oh, yeah.
All right, guys.
Settle down.
You got your drinks?
- Hm.
- Okay.
We're here to celebrate Maya,
who's officially become a Fikry.
It's been a long 14 months.
You know, AJ didn't want
to have a party.
I was like, dude,
it's not a big deal.
You go to Costco.
You get some big muffins.
- [A few bottles of champagne.
- No big deal.]
You know, also uh,
I'm the Godfather.
So, you know that wasn't going
to happen without a party.
I'd like to raise a glass
to Ismay.
She's the Godmother. Thank you.
Ismay.
Oh, and since you're all here,
I'm starting a book club.
- Ah?
- Yeah.
For law enforcement officers.
Or people who are just
law enforcement enthusiasts.
It's open.
We'll be reading "Out of Sight"
by Elmore Leonard.
So, get a book from the store.
AJ's a dad, we need to keep
Island Books in business.
For Maya!
One, two, three, four,
five, six, seven, eight, nine!
Good morning, cherry tree!
Good morning, magazines!
Good morning, books!
Good morning, bookstore!
- Hi, Amy.
- Hi.
You're early, Miss Loman.
I brought you
some picture books.
- Thank you.
- You're welcome.
I haven't read all of these yet
so I really want to know
what you think, okay?
Okay.
So, ready to chat about
the spring list?
Oh God,
is it spring list time already?
It comes every year.
Yeah, come in.
Oh.
Read anything good lately?
Honestly, I haven't had
much time for reading
since I became a dad.
How did you get up here?
The first time
I saw Halley's Comet in 1986,
I was already old.
Halley's Comet
will return in 2061,
and scientists predict
it will be a better,
brighter appearance
than in 1986.
I will, needless to say,
be dead.
It isn't a sad thing.
Many of you will be dead, too.
Such is life.
Depending on when you were born,
you have a chance
of seeing Halley's Comet
twice in a lifetime.
But I was not born
at the right time for that.
Some of us live one-comet lives.
And this, I suppose,
must be enough.
Why are you crying?
I was reading.
- Hello?
- Oh, hi.
Amelia, this is AJ Fikry
from Island.
I wasn't expecting you
to answer.
Are we still on for two weeks
from now,
or do you have to cancel?
Oh no, nothing like that.
I was um,
planning on leaving you a
message, actually.
Hi, you have reached
the voicemail of Amelia Loman.
Beep.
Um...
Beep. Go ahead.
Leave your message.
Um okay, hi, Amelia.
This is AJ Fikry.
I just finished reading a book
that you recommended.
Oh yeah, which one?
That's odd.
Voice mail seems to be
talking back to me.
It was from several years back.
"The Late Bloomer"
by Leon Friedman.
Oh, don't go breaking
my heart, AJ.
That was my absolute favorite
from four winter lists ago.
No one wanted to read it.
I don't know if you remember,
but
you gave me "The Late Bloomer"
the first time we met.
Did I?
Would have been around
the time I started at Knightley.
Well, you know,
that literary memoirs
aren't really my thing,
but this was spectacular
in its small way.
Hm-mm. Go on.
Every word the right one
and exactly where it should be.
Oh, darn it.
What?
Missed my turn.
Oh well, that's all. I'll...
I'll let you get back
to the road.
I'm sorry it took me so long
to read it.
I begged everyone I knew
to read this book,
and no one would listen to me
except my mother.
Even she wasn't an easy sell.
Sometimes books don't find us
until the right time.
It's not much
consolation for Mr. Friedman.
I suppose not.
Hmm, well, Amelia,
I guess I'll see you
in a couple of weeks.
Oh, maybe next time
you will listen to me
when I tell you something's the
'best book
on the winter list'.
Yeah, probably not. I'm old, set
in my ways, contrary.
You're not that old.
Not compared to Mr. Friedman,
I guess.
Hm, maybe when you're in town
next week,
- have dinner or something.
- Sir, I'd like to purchase this.
- Just one second.
- Hmph.
Sorry, customers.
Stores have those.
Yeah sometimes.
It's annoying really.
So uh, dinner?
Right.
We cam discuss
the new winter list.
Of course.
Yes, of course. It's such a long
trip from Alice.
You'll be hungry. It's rude that
I haven't suggested it before.
Let's make it a late lunch then.
I'll need to catch
the last ferry back to Hyannis.
Pequods, like Moby Dick.
Do you like Moby Dick?
I hate it.
I don't say that
about many things.
Teachers assign it,
and there're parents are happy
because their kids are reading
something of quality.
But it's forcing kids
to read books like that
that makes them think
they hate reading.
I'm surprised you didn't cancel
when you saw the name
of the restaurant.
Oh, I thought about it.
Aarghh!
Ahoy, landlubbers.
Care for a themed cocktail?
One Queequeg, please.
Ah, okay.
Sir?
Just, a glass of whatever
your house red is.
Okay.
That's sad.
I bet you've gone
your whole life
without having a Queequeg
despite the fact
that you live here
and you sell books
and you probably even like
Moby Dick.
You're obviously a more
evolved person than I am.
Yeah, I can see that.
And after I have this cocktail,
my whole life's going to change.
One Queequeg for the lady.
- Oh.
- One glass of red
for the gentleman.
Thanks.
Look, a little shrimp through
a plastic anchor.
That is an unexpected delight.
Cheers.
Mm. Cheers.
Ooh.
So...
let's talk books.
Books.
Well, thank you again for lunch.
Next time it's on me.
Why don't I walk you
to the ferry?
All right.
If you don't mind me asking,
why was "The Late Bloomer"
your favorite book
from the list?
- You're a young...
- No, no, no. Not that young.
What I mean to say is
you probably haven't experienced
much of what Mr. Friedman
describes.
I look at you,
and after reading the book,
I wonder what made you
respond to it.
Mr. Fikry, that is a very
personal question.
Sorry.
The main reason I loved the book
was the quality of the writing,
of course.
Of course.
But that isn't enough.
Let's just say I'd been
on many, many bad dates
by the time "The Late Bloomer"
came across my desk.
I am a romantic person,
but these don't always seem
like romantic times to me.
The "Late Bloomer" is a book
about the possibility
of finding great love
at any age.
Sounds clich, I know.
And you? Why did you like it?
Quality of the prose.
No, we're not allowed
to say that, I thought.
You don't want to
hear my sad stories.
Sure, I do. I love sad stories.
My wife died
a couple of years ago,
and Friedman gets
at something specific
about what it is
to lose someone.
How it isn't one thing.
He writes about how you lose
and lose and lose.
It could have been
a popular book.
I know.
I'm thinking of having someone
read a passage
from it at my wedding.
You're getting married, Amelia.
Congratulations!
Who's the lucky fellow?
- His name is Brett Brewer.
- Hmm.
I had just about given up
when I met him online.
Tell me more.
He's in the military,
serving overseas in Afghanistan.
Oh, well done. You're marrying
an American hero.
I guess I am.
I hate those guys.
Well, they just make me feel
so inadequate.
Tell me something shitty
about him so I feel better.
Well, he's not home much.
Yeah, you must miss him.
I do.
Get a ton of reading done,
though.
That's good. Does he read, too?
No, actually.
No, he's not much of a reader.
That's kind of interesting.
I just mean, it's interesting
to be with someone whose, um...
whose interests
are so different from mine.
I don't know
why I keep saying 'interests.'
The point is, he is a good man.
And he's good to you,
that's what counts.
Hm.
Anyway, no one's perfect.
Someone probably made him
read "Moby Dick" in high school.
And your wife, was she a reader?
Mm-hm.
And a writer.
Hmm.
I wouldn't worry about it,
though.
Reading's overrated.
Look at all the good stuff
on television.
Hm.
Oh, darn it!
I think that's my ferry.
It was nice talking
with you, AJ.
I'll see you in March!
Looking forward to it.
Hey, don't wait four years
to read my books next time!
I won't!
AJ. There's something
kind of heroic
about being a bookseller.
There's also something
kind of heroic
about adopting a child!
Thank you, Amelia.
My friends call me Amy!
I think I've met someone.
Haha, good news.
Yeah. The problem is, she's
affianced to someone else.
- Ah, bad timing.
- Yeah.
You know, I've been a cop
for over 20 years.
Pretty much every bad thing
in life
is a result of bad timing.
And every good thing
is a result of good timing.
That seems terribly reductive.
Hey, it's good to know
your heart still works.
Want me to set you up
with someone?
Nah.
Come on, I know everyone
in town.
Yeah unfortunately,
it's a very small town.
So Lambiase says
you own the bookstore?
Hm.
Oh, do you read?
A ton actually.
Oh, great.
Mainly sports memoirs.
Yeah, they're my thing.
You know they're all
ghostwritten?
Yeah, so what?
These books... they're...
Look, my point is
they're essentially lies.
All of life's
in a sports memoir.
You practice hard, you succeed,
and then eventually your body
gives out and it's over.
Sounds like a latter-period
Philip Roth novel.
That's one of those things
you say to sound smart, right?
But, really,
you're trying to make
someone else feel stupid.
I'm not sure
I wanna see you again.
I'm sorry if I hurt your
feelings before.
The memoirs thing, I just...
Don't worry about it.
You can't help the way you are.
Maya, do you know how old I am?
No.
I'm 43.
Oh.
In all these years
I've learned that it's...
it's better to have loved
and lost
and it's better to be alone
than to be with someone
you don't really fancy.
Do you agree?
Sometimes, though,
I get tired of learning lessons.
I have a question.
Yes, beautiful.
Don't you ever go to work?
Uh, I'm at work right now.
You don't look like
you're working.
You look like you're reading.
Don't you have a place
that you go
where you have a job?
Hm mm. Come here,
I wanna show you something.
All right, look at this.
You see, this right here...
Who's that?
Daniel Parish.
Hm mm.
- You're a writer.
- Oh.
What is this about?
Ah, it's about the follies
of man.
It's a... it's a love story
and a tragedy.
That's very general.
Right, okay. It's about um,
a nurse
who has spent her whole life
taking care of other people.
She gets in a car accident,
and now the other people
have to take care of her
for the first time in her life.
That does not sound like
something I would read.
Well, it was on the New York
Times Bestseller List
for over a year.
Is Daniel Parish a good writer?
He is good,
but he's not my favorite.
That's what I thought.
- Let me answer it.
- Yeah.
Island Books, Maya speaking.
Hi, Maya.
Hi, Amy!
Did you read the book
I sent you?
Hey!
Amelia. Amelia, hello.
Hi, AJ. I'd like to have our
next meeting over video call.
- Is that okay?
- No, it's...
it's not a problem.
Maybe uh, next week?
Great. I'll send over details.
What?
Summer list time.
Okay, so Knightley has not one
but two short-story collections
on the summer...
Crutches?
Yeah.
Yeah, that's we are meeting
this way.
Did this stupid thing
of breaking my ankle
and now I'm stuck here
for the next six or seven weeks.
I'm sorry.
That's my own fault.
Galoshes are better for rain
than ice.
So, back to the list.
When is the wedding?
Or has it already happened yet?
It's off actually.
Amelia, I'm sorry to hear that.
Hm, happened a while ago.
Over Christmas.
What happened?
If you don't mind me asking.
Brett's a great guy,
but the sad truth is
we don't have very much
in common.
Shared sensibility does matter.
Okay, so a story I really love.
It has a murder mystery element
but...
What is that book?
- Which book?
- That... that book.
It's leaning on the lamp,
on the table behind you.
Hm, wouldn't you like to know.
It's my favorite.
It was a gift from my father
for my college graduation.
Huh. So, what is it?
If you ever come down
to Providence, I'll show you.
This isn't like a date, is it?
Uh...
I'm teasing. Come inside.
No, please. Sit. Let me.
Mm-hmm.
You were so mean to me
the first time we met.
I still haven't forgiven you,
you know?
Yeah, I'd hoped
you'd forgotten that.
I haven't.
My memory is very long, AJ.
I was awful.
But in my defense,
I was going through a bad time.
Told my mother about you.
She said that
you didn't sound like
very good boyfriend material.
I know. I'm not.
Sorry about that.
Because I like you enormously.
Do you wanna see
what that book is?
Which book?
The book in my office
that you asked me about.
Isn't that what you came to see?
My office is through my
bedroom, by the way.
Hm.
I'll show you the book
in the morning.
My ankle hurts, so
apologies if my seduction
lacks some of the subtlety
it might usually have.
Dear AJ, my mother likes to say
that novels have ruined me
for real men.
I find this insulting
because it implies
that I only read books
with classically
romantic heroes.
I don't mind
the occasional novel
with a romantic hero
but as you know by know,
my tastes are far more varied
than that.
One way or round trip?
Uh, round.
For instance, I adore Humbert
Humbert as a character
while accepting the fact
that he would make
an appalling boyfriend
or even casual acquaintance.
The same is true
for Holden Caulfield
and Misters Rochester and Darcy.
But I think where my mother
has a point is,
in so far as I tend to take in
an overly romantic view
of things.
And, this means
I have been known
to ignore the signs
that something won't work out.
So, while these last months
have been
some of the most romantic...
Ah, you'd been gone too long.
Only a week.
So, while I feel
a real connection with...
So, while I certainly enjoyed
our time together
and I loved to getting
to know Maya,
the reality is it takes me
five hours
to get to Alice Island,
if the traffic is good,
which it rarely is.
And, if the ferry is running
which it often is not,
I can't move from Providence,
and you can't move
from Alice Island.
The situation is irresolvable.
And maybe it isn't fair to Maya,
or to you, or to me
to continue on, on something
that is doomed to fail.
As my mother like to say,
"Amelia, you're 34 years old.
You don't have any more time
to waste in
impossible relationships."
She doesn't mean herself,
by the way. Ha-ha.
I find it difficult to say,
any of these things
when we're together.
When are you coming back?
About that, I probably
won't be able to see you
as much as this summer.
I'm traveling for work,
my mother is going
to Providence in August.
Uh, and I...
I could come and see you?
I really won't be around much.
Amelia, I'm sorry.
For what?
That I can't do more
of the driving.
I love you.
I love you, too.
She's gonna love it,
and I hope she says yes.
Well, she'd still be our friend
even if she says no.
Why would she say no?
Lots of reasons.
Your dad isn't exactly a catch.
Hey.
This okay with you, by the way?
Okay. Come on.
I'm pumped.
I've never met a writer before.
Daniel Parish.
Oh, yeah. Daniel Parish.
I always forget he's a writer.
Leon Friedman.
Novelist extraordinaire.
Pleased to meet you.
- Oh.
- You must be AJ Fikry.
Ah, actually this is AJ Fikry.
You must be AJ Fikry!
The gal at Knightley says
you love my book.
There's going to be liquor
at this event, yes?
Well, it is the afternoon
so we weren't planning on it,
but I am sure
I can procure some.
I thought he'd be different
somehow.
Authors never look like
their author photographs.
I'm 81 years old,
and statistically speaking,
I should have died
4.7 years ago.
My God, this is depressing.
You people really like this?
Hmm.
Oh.
Thanks.
Mmm. Aaah.
What's your favorite book?
Oh, don't know that I have one.
Why don't you tell me
what you'd like
for Christmas instead?
Christmas? Christmas isn't for
four months.
Well...
Wow, it's really great
to meet you.
My boyfriend
and I would probably
would not have gotten together
if it weren't for your book.
Ah, give me a hug.
Oh.
That's the power of fiction
for you.
Yeah, I suppose.
Only it isn't fiction, right?
It actually happened.
Oh yes, sweetheart. Of course.
Perhaps, Mr. Friedman meant
to say that
that is the power of narrative.
And perhaps Mr. Friedman
was trying to say
that a relationship based
on loving a book is
not likely to be much
of a relationship.
- Margaret Loman.
- Ah.
My spouse died a couple
of years ago, too.
Amelia, my daughter,
made me read your book
for my Widows
of Charleston Book Club.
Everyone loved it.
Oh, how nice.
How nice.
How...
Yes?
Oh God!
- Oh!
- I seem to have had
too much to drink.
Obviously.
I'm going to take Friedman
to the airport.
Ismay said she'd do it,
but I think
the only decent thing
- is for me to go with her.
- Hm, good man.
I'll watch Maya
and I'll clean up here.
I thought today
would be more romantic
than it turned out to be.
No, it's very romantic.
It's more romantic
than a lecherous old drunk
looking down my blouse?
AJ, we need to go.
That's me.
Hey uh, I don't think
I made a good impression
on your mother.
No one does.
I wouldn't worry too much
about it.
I love you.
AJ?
I can help.
Thank you.
You can get all the plastic cups
and napkins.
Was something wrong
with the writer?
The usual.
Oh, excuse me.
I can't say he was completely
what I was expecting.
What were you expecting?
Someone more intellectual,
I think.
- Hmm.
- That sounds really snobby.
That's probably not
the right word.
No, no. I...
Um, I know what you mean.
My expectations
were probably too high.
I work for his publisher.
It was my favorite thing
I ever sold, actually.
Why was it your favorite?
I had lost my dad right before,
and I guess something
in the voice
reminded me of him.
Also, there so many true,
true things in it.
They make the publishers
clean up after the reading?
No, I'm the bookstore owner's
girlfriend, too.
So, I'm just helping out.
Oh, he must be a huge fan
of the book
to bring Leon Friedman here
after all these years.
Yeah.
The truth is, he did it for me.
It was the first book
we loved together.
That's cute.
Kind of like
the first restaurant you go to
or the first song you danced to
or something.
Yeah, exactly.
Why don't you think
the book sold?
- "The Late Bloomer?"
- Hm.
It's competitive out there.
Sometimes even
when a book is good,
it just still doesn't work.
That must be hard.
Are you writing a book
or something?
I've tried, yes.
Amelia Loman.
Leonora Ferris.
Are you from Alice?
No, I just came in for the day.
For the reading.
Oh. You must be a big fan
of the book, too.
I know from experience
that Alice
is not the easiest place
in the world to get to.
No, it isn't.
No one travels without purpose.
Those who are lost wish
to be lost.
You're quoting
"The Late Bloomer."
It really was your favorite.
It was.
"When I was young,
I never felt young."
Something like that.
Do you remember the rest
of that quote?
- No.
- Oh,
writers don't remember
everything they write.
How could they?
It was nice talking to you.
You're him, aren't you?
You are Leon Friedman.
Not truly.
What does that mean?
A long time ago,
a girl wrote a novel,
and she tried to sell it,
but no one wanted it.
So, she thought it would
be easier
if she retitled the book
and called it a memoir.
Who was that man?
I um, called a casting office.
He usually plays Santa.
I don't understand.
Why do the reading?
Why go to the bother
and the expense?
Why risk it?
No, the book
had already flopped.
And sometimes you wanna know...
to see for yourself
that your work
has meant something to someone.
I feel a little fooled.
You're a good writer, you know?
I do now.
How was the drive?
The best thing I can say is
Mr. Friedman was passed out
for most of it.
I should get back to the hotel.
My mother and I have to leave
early tomorrow.
No. No, stay! Stay a bit.
Just think quick!
- Oh!
- Oh!
Ow! AJ what the fuck?
I'm sorry I was trying
to get you not to leave.
I thought
you were gonna catch it.
Oh... you aimed a little high.
It's uh... it's... it's for you.
Lets get married.
I know I'm stuck on this island.
I know I'm poor,
a single father.
And in a business with somewhat
diminishing returns.
I know
that your mother hates me,
that I'm obviously crap
at hosting author events-
Wait.
This is a strange proposal.
Lead with your strong stuff, AJ.
All I know is
when I read a book,
I want you to be reading it
at the same time.
I want to know
what Amelia would...
would think of it.
Okay.
Okay?
Okay.
Okay. Okay.
At the end of the day,
a man feels compelled to share
what he learned in this life.
It is the secret fear
that we are unlovable
that isolates us,
but it is only
because we are isolated
that we think
that we are un lovable.
So, here's my wish for you.
Some day, you do not know when,
you will be driving
down the road.
And some day,
you do not know when,
you will make a wrong turn.
At the end of the road,
when you're least expecting it,
a person will be there.
And this person
will be a city to you.
And in this city,
there will be love.
And in this city,
there will be sorrow.
And in this city,
there will be sickness,
and health,
and better, and worse.
And everything under the sun.
Ismay!
It's a little cold for a swim.
Yeah, a little. I just...
came up to clear my head.
Must be hard to see
AJ married to someone
other than your sister.
Yeah, but Amelia seems lovely.
The thing about weddings is
it can make a person
feel real lonely.
Here.
You took that turn
a little fast.
I don't love you anymore.
You always get like this
at weddings.
You're not a good man.
I'm complex.
Maybe I'm not good, but I'm
certainly not the worst.
Know you're bad.
And what's worse,
is you've made me bad.
Ismay, this is an insane place
to park.
Every time I see her
with AJ and Amelia,
I'm sick to my stomach.
Because she should
have been ours.
What?
If you had done the right thing,
she'd be ours.
I know Marian Wallace
was your girlfriend.
That isn't true.
And I know that she left Maya
for you!
If you thought that was true,
why didn't you do something?
I was pregnant.
I lost the baby
but I was pregnant.
And if you had just come to me,
I would have adopted her,
Daniel.
I would have forgiven you
and I would have taken her in.
And she would have been ours.
But Marian Wallace
was not my girlfriend.
How stupid do you think
that I am?
She was a girl
who came to a reading
and a girl I slept with once.
I mean, how could I even be sure
the child was mine? Hmm?
Every last bit of love
I had for you is gone.
I still love you.
I think I'm okay.
Are you okay?
Oh, my leg! I think it's broken.
Oh, it's bad...
Ismay, you have to drive!
"In The Children
in the Apple Tree,"
the main character
is in a fatal car accident.
I'd struggled writing it.
Everything I knew
about fatal car accidents
came from books I'd read.
And I was never really happy
with what I'd written.
The passage hadn't been
as bad as I thought.
Oh, Daniel.
I thought you were gonna wear
the dress.
Sorry, Amy. Seemed too fancy.
Welcome, my friends and fellow
literature enthusiasts,
to the 55th Annual Island County
High School Short Story Contest.
You all are in
for a treat tonight!
I'd like to congratulate
our ten semi-finalists,
who represent the best young
minds of Island County.
Now, onto our three finalists.
From Alice Island High School,
"My Grandmother's Hands"
written by John Furness.
"My Grandmother's Hands."
When I was young, I didn't
realize that people got old.
I thought some people
were just born old, and
some people
were just born young...
"The Journey" by Virginia Kim.
"The Journey."
The girl did not know
that it would be the last time
she would see her mother
until she was on the plane.
She had never been
on a plane before.
Our last finalist
is also from Alice Island High
School.
"A Day at the Beach"
by Maya T. Fikry.
Yeah! That's my goddaughter.
It's actually
"A Trip to the Beach."
Sorry, what did I say?
You said, "A Day at the Beach,"
which is close,
but it means something
completely different.
I stand corrected.
"A Trip to the Beach."
Mary is running late.
She has a private room,
but she shares the bathroom
with six other people.
It seems like someone's
always using it.
She owed her money.
It terrified her
to think how much.
She felt as if she had
been running
for the better part
of two years.
Every part of her body
was tired.
And yes, Mary knew
she was a disappointment.
She could see it in
the professor's kind,
disinterested...
What would be left? Nothing.
The end of some credit cards
could cover the groceries...
To have lowered herself
to return to this place,
to this woman...
she had barely escaped
the first time.
This dingy gray house
felt like a trap.
The baby, she thought,
had so few things
and so many things.
And every year,
she would need so many more.
She wasn't sure if the credit
card would go through,
but then it did.
It was just before Christmas,
and the train station
was filled with families
- and presents and good cheer...
- Wake up. She's almost finished.
And Mary had never felt...
I haven't been asleep.
Just imagining. It's very vivid.
Mary smiles brightly.
"I thought I would take a trip
to the beach," she says.
"The baby loves the beach."
"Isn't it a little cold
for the beach?" the girl asked.
When she gets to Alice Island,
the first place Mary sees
is a bookstore.
She goes inside
so that she and the baby
can warm up.
A man is at the counter.
That's you!
He has a very grumpy demeanour.
I'm looking for something
to read.
What kind of books do you like?
Oh, all kinds.
I basically like them better
than people.
Me too.
My favorite kind of book
is where a character
has hardships
but overcomes them in the end.
It's silly probably.
I know life isn't like that.
Maybe that's why
it's your favorite?
Maybe.
- Oh, I have the perfect...
- It just came in. One sec.
Miss?
He leaves the book
on the counter
just in case Mary ever decided
to come back.
Mary is on the beach,
but the baby is not with her.
She used to swim on a swim team.
She was good enough to win the
state's championship
in high school.
That day, the water is cold,
and Mary is out of practice.
She swims out
past the lighthouse,
and she doesn't swim back.
Great job, Maya!
I am going to frame
that certificate.
Whatever. It's just third.
And your story was amazing.
Seriously.
Thanks, Amy.
Wasn't it, AJ?
- Just wait.
- Dad, I'm really...
These things are never fair.
People like what they like,
and that's the great
and terrible thing.
It's about personal taste
and a certain set of people
on a certain day.
For instance, two out of the
three finalists were women,
which may have tipped
the scales toward the male.
Maybe one
of the judges' grandmothers
died last week,
which made that story
particularly effective.
One never knows.
But here's what I do know.
"A Trip to the Beach"
by Maya Tamerlane Fikry,
that was written by a writer.
I know it's dumb,
just really wanted to win.
I know.
Yeah, okay, but what the heck
happened to the violin?
I mean,
did I miss something here?
A priceless Stradivarius
doesn't just disappear
out of thin air.
Maybe that's the writer's point
that the violin's not the point?
Of course, it's the point.
Maybe the point is
how the violin
affects everybody's lives?
Oh, boo.
Boooo.
Back me up here, AJ.
You don't always have to know
who stole the violin.
Man, in my experience,
a book is more satisfying
to readers if you do.
- Oh!
- Thank you!
Though although I don't mind
ambiguity myself.
Traitor!
Lambiase, do you even read
the book?
Yeah, I've read this book twice.
Once, I put it on the chief's...
- Hi!
- Hey.
I'm gonna need 50 copies
of "Our Town."
It's a classic.
I did like it. Judgment free.
If you look at her picture,
she's clearly saying,
"You're never gonna find out
where the damn violin was."
She does have quite a smirk
on her, though.
She does, she does.
What group is this again?
Chief's Choice.
So, what are you doing
when you're not being a cop?
Well, believe it or not,
I read a lot.
I mean, maybe you
wouldn't think it was that much.
I know you teach English.
What do you read?
A little bit of everything.
I started out with crime novels.
Pretty predictable, that.
I mean I'm a cop.
Did you ever read
any of Daniel's books?
One. The first one.
Did you like it?
Not my cup of tea.
It was very well written though.
Do you miss your husband?
The best parts of him
were in his books.
What do you like to read?
Plays, the odd bit of poetry.
There's the books
that I teach every year.
They're like old friends to me.
But, if I'm choosing something
just for me,
something new...
I'd say my favorite
kind of character
is a woman in a faraway place.
Like India, or Bangkok.
She's just left her husband,
or maybe she never had a husband
because she knew, wisely,
that the married life
was not for her.
I like when she has
multiple lovers.
And I like when she wears hats
to shield her fair skin from the
sun.
I like descriptions of hotels
and
suitcases with stickers on them.
And a little romance,
but not too much.
The story is period.
Maybe a war,
but in the background.
Not a lot of bloodshed.
A little sex,
but not too graphic.
And no children.
Cause they usually spoil
the story for me.
I don't have any.
For I don't mind them
in real life.
I just don't want
to read about them.
An ending could be happy or sad.
I don't really care anymore
as long as it's earned.
And then she can settle down and
open her own little business,
or she can drown herself
in the ocean.
Hey.
I'm gonna make you breakfast.
Have you ever considered
not having a moustache?
If it bothers you, it's gone.
No, I like it.
I've been a cop
for almost 30 years.
Sometimes it's hard
to stop being a cop.
I had overly focused
on the details of things.
Writers and cops are the same
that way.
Good book, bad book.
It's the details
that tell the story.
I'm not bragging but I can
always solve a
solve a story before it's done.
I might be a better reader
than a cop.
Answer the mysteries.
Usually, the thing
that's out of place.
But sometimes it's the things
in plain sight
that you don't allow yourself
to see.
It's nice to have someone
to cook for.
Smells great.
The difference between a cop
and a writer
is that cops
have to see everything.
Writers get to choose
what to see
and what to ignore.
Hey, can you stop at the store
on your way home?
We need Drain-o...
- Drain-o.
- Sponges...
- Sponges.
- Grapes, if they have them.
Grapes.
Yeah, I'll get them
if they have them.
- Okay.
- I love you.
I love you, too.
Oh...
Would you mind spelling
that for me?
I like to Google things.
Tell me a good cop story.
You mean a story about
a good cop
or an interesting story
about a police officer.
It's up to you.
I wanna hear something amusing
to distract me from my problems.
What problems? You have like the
perfect wife.
The perfect kid. Good business.
I'll tell you after.
Let me think.
So, about 15 years ago,
there's this kid,
goes to Alicetown.
Hadn't been to school
in a month.
Well, the parents were
at their wits' ends.
So, I decided to follow the kid
for a day.
After a while,
we get to this building
I've never been in before.
Round the corner up uh,
Main and Parker.
You know where am I?
You're at the library.
Bingo!
So, I didn't read much
back then.
I follow him up the stairs
to a library carrel in the back
and I'm thinking,
he's gotta be doing
drugs back there, right?
It's the perfect place.
Isolated.
But you know what he's got?
Uh, books I'd imagine.
I mean that's the obvious thing.
One thick book.
He's in the middle
of reading "Infinite Jest."
Have you ever read of it?
Now, you're making this up.
He's reading "Infinite Jest."
He says he can't read it at home
because he's got five siblings
to babysit.
He can't read it at school cause
his
buddies will make fun of him.
So, he skips school
to read in peace.
This book takes a lot
of concentration.
He says. "Listen, hombre,"
he says, "there's nothing
for me in school."
Everything is in this book.
I'm guessing, he's Hispanic, by
your use of the word hombre.
So, I haul his ass
back to school.
And the principal asks
what should his punishment be.
And I ask him how long
is it gonna take him
to finish his book?
He says, "A couple of weeks."
So, I suggest,
two-week library suspension
for delinquency.
You...
You're definitely
making this up.
Admit it.
What...
The troubled youth
did not skip school
to read "Infinite Jest."
I'm not making it up, AJ.
Yeah, really.
Are you kidding?
I swear to God.
Oh, God...
I was just...
I wanted to...
you seemed depressed.
I wanted to give you a story
with a little uplift.
Ah, thanks man.
Thanks very much.
So, what did you want
to tell me, by the way?
I want you to know I love you.
And I don't judge you
for anything
you might have done in the past.
I know about the bag
in the closet.
I know that the book's in there.
I don't know how it got there
and I don't need to know either.
The book is ruined.
But even a damaged Tamerlane
must still be worth something.
AJ and Amy need the money.
Why do they need the money?
AJ has cancer.
The way I see it, we wipe the
book of fingerprints,
put it in an envelope,
and return it.
No one has to know
where or who it came from.
How long have you known?
Since the first time
I came to your house.
And you weren't upset?
You didn't turn me in?
It's none of my business, Izzie.
I didn't come to your home
as an officer of the law.
Shouldn't be going through
your stuff.
I figured there must
have been a story.
I wanna tell you what happened.
I don't need to know.
I want you to know.
The first time
that Marian Wallace
came to see me,
I was five months pregnant.
She had Maya with her,
the baby was about two.
And she said that,
"Maya was Daniel's daughter."
And I said...
And I'm not proud of this...
"How do I know you're
not lying?"
You think you're the first one
to come around here,
and say that
you've had Daniel's child.
She kept apologizing.
She said, "The baby
doesn't have to a part
of Daniel Parish's life."
She kept calling him
by his first and last name.
Cause she was a fan, you see.
The baby doesn't have to be
in Daniel Parish's life.
We won't ever bother you again,
I swear to God.
We just need a little money td.
Mama, mama.
To move on.
He said he would help, and now I
can't find him anywhere.
Mama, mama, mama...
He's travelling.
I'll talk to him
and see what I can do.
I talked to Daniel that night
on the phone.
It was a good call, and I didn't
bring up Marian Wallace.
I'm gonna be a changed man
once that baby's here.
I had heard that before.
No, I'm serious.
I'm definitely
gonna travel less.
I'm gonna stay at home,
I'll write more,
I decided right thenu
andand there...
that I would take care of the
problem with Marian Wallace.
I would find a way
to buy her off.
Down the hill, my sister had
been dead for over a year,
and her husband was steadily
drinking himself to death.
Hello, dead wife.
Out of obligation to her,
I would check on AJ some nights.
Come on.
People always thought
we were rich.
But Daniel spent every dollar
we made.
I saw Tamerlane that night.
And I thought...
this could solve everything.
The next day, everyone
is looking for Tamerlane.
Oh hey, I'm looking
for Marian Wallace.
Thank you.
But I've gone into Cambridge.
Here.
You can sell it.
It's worth a lot of money.
Is it hot?
No, it belongs to Daniel,
and he wants you to have it,
but you can never say
where you got it.
You can take it
to an auction house,
or a rare-books dealer.
Just claim you found it
in a used-books bin.
I don't hear from Marian
Wallace again for a while,
and I think
maybe that's the end of it.
But of course, it isn't.
She says she's gone
to every auction house
and rare book dealer
in the Boston area,
and none of them want to deal
with the book
because it doesn't have
a provenance.
And the cops have been calling
about a stolen copy
of Tamerlane.
What am I supposed to do
with this?
Have you ever read "Tamerlane",
Mrs. Parish?
It's so sad.
It's about this
Turkish conqueror who
trades in the love of his life,
this poor peasant girl,
for power.
Do you fancy yourself
some poor peasant girl,
and I'm the mean wife
who is keeping you
from the love of your life?
No.
And the worst of it is,
I knew what I was doing.
He came to my college
for a reading.
I loved his book,
and when I slept with him.
I had read his author biography
a hundred times
and I knew that he was married.
I've made so many mistakes.
I can't help you.
I'm thinking I'll just slip
into AJ's apartment tomorrow
or the next day and return it.
That's when I notice...
The way I see it,
you saved AJ Fikry's life
by stealing that manuscript.
What kind of cop are you?
The old kind.
Hey.
This was leaning on your door.
Hmm. Probably another galley.
Don't say that.
Could be the next big thing.
So, what's...
what's good in crime?
I need something new
for Chief's Choice.
Hmm.
Maybe this?
Smart, sexy, and spell binding.
Yeah.
Lot 2200.
A last-minute addition
to this afternoon's auction
and a rare opportunity
for the vintage
books connoisseur.
Tamerlane and Other Poems
by Edgar Allan Poe.
Written when Poe was 18
and attributed to 'A Bostonian.'
Only 50 printed at the time.
Tamerlane
will be the crown jewel
in any serious
rare books collection.
This copy shows some wear
on the spine
and some markings of crayon
on the cover.
This damage should not
in any way spoil the beauty
or diminish the rarity
of the object,
and this cannot be overstated.
Let the bidding begin
at $ 20,000.
Do I see 20,000? I see 20,000.
Do I see 25? 25, 25, 25...
I see 25!
Do I see 30? 30, 30, 30...
"The Late Bloomer" really
was a bunch of hokum.
Do you remember
when Freedman writes
how you can't truly describe
a hospital room?
When the person you love
is in it
that it's too painful
to be described?
How did we ever find
that poetic?
No, seriously,
I'm disgusted with us.
At this stage in my life,
I'm with every person
who never wanted to read
that book.
I'm with the designer
who put the feet
and flowers on the cover.
Because you know what?
You can describe
a hospital room.
It's gray.
And the art is the worst art
that you've ever seen.
And everything smells like
you're trying to cover up
the smell of piss.
Amy...
you loved "The Late Bloomer."
Yeah, but I didn't want to be
in some stupid play version
of it in my 40s.
Hey.
You really think I should have
this surgery?
Yes, I do.
But is it worth it
for maybe two more years
that are likely to be crappy?
- It is.
- Mr. Fikry...
Just...
I love you.
I want to leave you with
something more
cleverer than that,
but it's all I know.
Mr. Fikry, it's time.
Dad.
In the last days
of the bookseller's life,
reading became difficult.
Novels had become impossible.
If he tried very hard,
he could still make it
through a short story.
The daughter asked him,
if he was afraid.
"Not of dying," he said,
but a little of this part
I'm in.
Every day there is less of me.
But you're here right now
and so I am glad to be here.
Even without books.
Shall I read to you, Dad?
Hm.
Ah, said Dolly,
with soothing gravity.
Said the night and the morning,
and the sleeping and the waking,
and the rain in the harvest.
One goes and the other comes.
And we know nothing,
how or where.
Dad?
Dad...
Who the hell are you?
Maya.
Good morning, cherry tree!
Good morning, bookstore!
Why are you crying?
I was reading.
"A Trip to the Beach"
by Maya Tamerlane Fikry.
And that was written
by a writer.
And while I can't say
it was a happily ever after,
it was the end.
I'm not here.
I need to ask your opinion
about something.
I'm thinking about taking
a new job.
It would mean a lot less travel,
a little more money.
And we could spend
more time together
because I wouldn't be
on the road so much.
You mean we'll leave Alice?
It's not that far.
It's just New York.
We can come back
anytime we want.
I know it's impossible
to get here.
It is impossible.
I won't take it
if you don't want me to.
I know how much you love
this place.
I love this place, too.
Okay.
I need to see your face.
Okay?
What will happen to the store?
End of an era.
Yeah.
Amelia said she tried
to get someone to run it but...
Here's a crazy thought.
What if you and I took it over?
In this economy,
that is a crazy thought.
Probably so.
You want to get something
to eat?
Yeah.
But what if we did?
I mean, I've got savings
and a pretty good pension
about to come in,
and so do you.
AJ said the summer people
bought a lot of books.
The summer people
have E-readers now.
That's true.
- Thank you.
- It is.
We could open a cafe, too.
That would probably help
with the bottom line.
AJ used to talk about that
all the time.
Turn the basement
into a theatre space.
That way, the author events
don't have to happen
right in the middle
of the store.
Your theater background
would be great for that.
Are you sure you're up for this?
We aren't super young.
But we're not old yet, either.
I've lived in Alice
my whole life.
It's the only place
that I've ever known.
It's a nice place,
I intend to keep it that way.
A place ain't a place
without a bookstore, Izzie.
Hi there. Um, one for Alice
Island, please.
- One-way or round trip?
- Round trip.
- Awsome, thank you so much!
- Thank you.
Welcome.
Mr. Lambiase.
Have I got a book for you!