The moment we sit down at the table and face reality,
Life begins to move
“Do you think it was a good idea to stay in Los Angeles?”
“This is where I most want to be at this very moment.”

★ Publishing contracts in 11 countries worldwide
★ 2024 Chicago Review of Books April Must-Reads
★ 2024 Cosmopolitan Spring TBR List Selection
★ Selected as a 2024 Amazon 'Book of the Year'
★ #2 in Amazon's short story category

Amor Towles, who has captured the hearts of readers around the world with three novels, 『The Elegant Lover』, 『A Gentleman in Moscow』, and 『Lincoln Highway』, is publishing 『Table for Two』, a new book, through Hyundae Munhak.
His first novel collection, consisting of six short stories and one novella, captures the fascinating moments of life where coincidence and inevitability intersect, set in the two cities of New York and Los Angeles.
These stories shatter all of the reader's expectations and imaginations, giving them the thrill of a twist.
The storyteller's unique imagination, built on a deep understanding of the times and faith in people that only Towles could portray, stands out.
This work is the result of his insight into the past ten years of his life, and is a new challenge for the short story genre, condensing his own literary personality and style.

“Question 110?”
“Yes,” said the employee.
“This is a question that requires you to say where you want to go.”
Pushkin, who had clearly skipped over the question, had no idea what to say.
Because I had never thought about that question for even a moment.
Pushkin searched his mind as he received the expectant gaze of his staff.
Irina seemed to remember always wanting to go to the Black Sea, but that was on Soviet territory… … .
As the sound of the man next to him tapping his feet on the floor became distinct, Pushkin found it even more difficult to think.
Then suddenly I remembered the young, beautiful woman in my wallet.
“New York City?” he said cautiously.
--- p.44 From "Standing in Line"

It's not for nothing that writers have been called masters of language for hundreds of years.
Writing requires special training and the stamina of a blacksmith.
A writer who writes with sincerity sweats in the forge of imagination and hammers sentences on the anvil of language.
What better place for an aspiring writer to earn his daily bread than a blacksmith's workshop? Timothy arrived at Mr. Pennybrook's bookstore, fully immersed in this purposeful pursuit.
When he went inside, the sight that unfolded before him was more, if not less, than he had hoped for.
--- pp.64-65 From "The Ballad of Timothy Touchet"

This time too, we parted without saying goodbye.
But before they could enter the aisle leading to the plane, Smithy turned around.
And with an embarrassed smile, he raised one hand and said:
“Asta Luego, Jerry.”
I also raised one hand and said.
“Asta Luego.” But what I was thinking inside was this.
“Asta Nunka.”
--- p.143 From "Asta Luego"

But as I watched John, the respectable old gentleman surrounded by a few admiring friends, his hands crossed in front of his chest, his head thrown back, skating in circles so fast he became almost a blur, I realized that Peggy had every reason to feel betrayed.
When Nell saw her husband's secret outings on the small screen of her camera, what came into her eyes must have been an image of pure joy.
The joy of existing where she is not, and the joy that seems only possible if she is not there.
--- p.189 From "I Will Survive"

Tommy hung his suit on a hanger, brushed his teeth, and climbed into bed.
Then, he pretended to read a book for about a minute, then turned off the light and closed his eyes.
But soon I got up again and put my shoes away.
After Tommy lay back down on the pillow, I leaned over and kissed his forehead.
Sometimes we need that.
No matter how bleak the situation is, someone gives you a kiss on the head as if to comfort you and say that everything will be okay.
I felt like I should do at least that much.
In ten minutes I'll be fast asleep, but it's going to be a very, very long night for Tommy.
--- p.217 From "The Smuggler"

“How much do you think it will cost?”
"well.
“About 100,000? 120,000? It could even be up to 150,000.”
Sharon nodded.
It seemed like he had done similar calculations himself.
She spoke almost as if she were talking to herself.
“I have to pay taxes too….”
"yes.
My client may be willing to pay in cash, so… … .”
I made a gesture that the world is an unpredictable place.
Sharon kept turning the flashlight on and off, trying to decide what choice to make.
Various paths led to liberation or curse.
--- p.291 From “Sculpture of Didomenico”

“Why did you extend the ticket from Chicago to Los Angeles?”
She looked slightly surprised, but then smiled brightly.
“I don’t know either.
I guess I just felt like it was time to change the scenery a bit.”
--- pp.324-325 from "Hollywood's Eve"

How sophisticated is the curiosity revealed in her questions.
Even Galileo and Isaac Newton in their youth probably had such curiosity.
Instead of clinging slavishly to the fickle certainties of the past (indeed, she seemed to instinctively doubt them), she took an interest in the world.
He also showed interest in the immutable laws that are invisible to the eye but that keep us from being thrown out into space by the world's axis.
--- p.331 From "Hollywood Eve"

The year before, Ritzki had followed Dhabi around like everyone else.
But there was no such waste of effort.
It was clear that the film studio people had very strict control over her.
Her life consisted of drinking soda at 6 o'clock, eating dinner at 7 o'clock, returning home, drinking a glass of milk, and then covering herself tightly with the blanket and going to sleep.
Well, you can't blame the film company for this action.
They knew exactly what they were sitting on.
The seventy-ninth element on the periodic table, that is, something like gold.
--- p.368 From "Hollywood's Eve"

To sum it up, it was like this.
It's true that ordinary mothers and fathers want to see the girl next door on the silver screen.
But the only thing they liked more than that was the sight of the girl rolling down the floor.
It didn't mean they were bad people.
They had no mean temperament.
It was just something they couldn't do anything about.
The Germans called that Schadenfreude.
Ritzki thought it was human nature.
In fact, the term 'human nature' is a fancy term for a God-given flaw.
And we have no intention of returning that flaw to God.
--- p.377 From "Hollywood's Eve"

“Do you want to know what this city is like?” he said.
“Let me tell you.
This is similar to a waiting room.
It's the largest waiting room in the world.
We're all sitting on a wooden bench, reading yesterday's newspaper, eating yesterday's lunch.
But sometimes the doors to the platform will open and the conductor will let one of his men in to board the Payday Express.
Sometimes a third-rate writer who has somehow managed to get his writing done while working in the mailroom onto that big oak desk gets on that train, and sometimes an elegant young lady, someone like your friend, gets picked off the farm.
But sometimes, that opportunity comes to ordinary people like me.”
--- p.380 From "Hollywood Eve"

After living in this city for twenty years, Ritzki could now believe in almost anything.
I've seen fools become rich, and I've seen geniuses become penniless.
I've seen works of art thrown into the trash, and I've seen cheap art capture the hearts and minds of Americans.
I've also seen adults who have feelings for each other have relationships that go beyond imagination.
If you try to understand the relationships between such people, you will most likely end up in a mental hospital.
But even though I've come to believe that anything can happen in Hollywood, I can't count on my luck.
--- p.500 From "Hollywood's Eve"

Well, money cleaned up this whole damn city.

--- p.514 From "Hollywood Eve"