In Amos Oz's new novel, the main character - a certain writer - comes to meet the public. Looking around those gathered in the hall, he gives some of them a name and a destiny. Living people become characters and henceforth follow the path of his imagination. In essence, this book is Oz’s attempt, through the lips of his hero, to answer the most important questions of the philosophy of creativity: “Why do you write?”, “What is it like to be a famous writer?”, “How do you define yourself?"