Kathleen: You were spying on me, weren't you? You probably rented those children.
Joe: Why would I spy on you?
Kathleen: Because I am your competition, which you know perfectly well or you wouldn't have put up the sign: "Just around the corner."
Joe: The entrance to our store is around the corner. There's no other way of saying that. It's not the name of our store. It's where it is. And you do not own the phrase "around the corner."
Joe: What is that? What are you doing? What is that? What are you doing? You're taking all the caviar? That caviar is a garnish.
Joe: Look, the reason I came into your store because I was spending the day with Annabel and Matt. I was buying them presents. I'm the type of guy who likes tobuy his way into the hearts of children who are relatives. There was only one place to find a children's book in the neighborhood. That won't always be the case. And it was yours. And it is a charming little bookstore. You probably sell, what, $350,000 worth of books in a year?
Kathleen: How did you know that?
Joe: I'm in the book business.
Kathleen: I am in the book business.
Joe: I see. And we are the Price Club. Only instead of a ten-gallon vat of olive oil for $3.99 that won't even fit under your kitchen cabinet, we sell cheap books. Me, a spy? Oh! Absolutely! I have in my possession the super-duper secret printout of the sales figures of a bookstore so inconsequential, yet full of its own virtue that I was immediately compelled to rush over for fear it will gonna put me out of business. What? What?
Frank: Hi. How you doing? Frank Navasky.
Joe: Joe Fox.
Frank: Joe Fox.
Joe: F-O-X.
Frank: The inventor of the superstore. Of course. The enemy of the Mid-list Novel. The destroyer of City Books. Tell me something really, how do you sleep at night?
Patricia: I use a wonderful over-the-counter drug. "Ultra-dorm." Don’t take the whole thing. Just half. You'll wake up without even the tiniest hangover. You're Frank Navasky, aren't you?
Frank: Yes.
Patricia: Your last piece in the Observer about Anthony Powell was, was brilliant. Brilliant! Yes. I'm Patricia Eden. Eden Books. Joe. This man is the greatest living expert on Julius and Ethel Rosenberg.
Frank: You really liked, liked my-
Joe: This is Kathleen Kelly.
Frank: My piece? I’m sorry. I just—you know, I'm flattered. You write these things. You think somebody's gonna mention them. The phone doesn't ring for a week and you start to think: "I'm a fraud. I'm a failure or something."
Patricia: You know what always fascinated me about Julius and Ethel Rosenberg? Is how old they looked when they were really just our age? You know? I'm so happy to have finally met you. We’ll talk. Have you ever thought about doing a book?
Frank: It's crossed my mind, something relevant for today like the Luddite movement in 1 9th century England or something. We should talk. Call me.
妙语佳句,活学活用
1. Spy on
Spy 有“间谍”的意思,那么我们可容易推断出来 spy on 的意思就是“secretly or furtively observe someone or something侦查, 暗中观察/监视”,例如:
The children loved spying on the grownups.孩子们喜欢暗中观察大人。
The company sent him to spy on the competitor's sales force. 公司派他去侦察竞争对手的销售力量。
2. Buy one's way into
这个习惯用语的意思是“花钱以达到一定的目的”,比如 That guy bought his way into the football team. 那个人花了钱才进的足球队。在电影中,I'm the type of guy who likes to buy his way into the hearts of children who are relatives. 可以理解为“我是那种喜欢花钱亲近还是孩子的亲友的人”。
3. That won't always be the case.
以后就不会是这样了。
4. Put one out of business
指的是“挤垮某人(的企业)”,例如:That Mr Peterson tried to put my grandpa put of the business but failed. 那个彼得森先生曾试图挤垮我爷爷的公司,但是失败了。