I'm back at the cafe! Now onto the third entry of the コーヒーが冷めないうちに book series by Toshikazu Kawaguchi.

But wait....this looks different, yet familiar. I am now at Café Donna Donna for more coffee, views of the seas, comedy, and....death.

And I wonder to myself, am I truly living in the present?

You can read my thoughts here for the first book and the second book. The series do gradually get better and that's why I'm back for more by reading the third book of this series! Even though it's still the same thing as the previous two books, I can see why these sequels exist.

They're saying something different, but ultimately arriving at the same uplifting conclusion each time.

And that's too good to be ignored, even though let's be clear, this book series is nothing special. There's already tons of 'reflexive' Japanese media like this one, and this book series seems to only offer its sci-fi elements to bring something new in the table. I mean come on, waitresses being living TARDISes hasn't even been explored in Doctor Who.

But the thing is....the formula works. If it ain't broken, just keep doing it. And yet, I still have tears in my eyes.

And so, once again, with the album “Steve McQueen” by Prefab Sprout still playing in my ears, wistful evenings in my home, and coffee in my desk, I am back at the cafe to think, to feel, and to go back to the past before the coffee gets cold.

As I finish this book, the cup of coffee in my mouth tells me to live in the present. Full (LONG) thoughts under the cut, as usual.

The first thing you need to know about this book is that while it's set in Hakodate instead of Tokyo, you still need to read the previous two books to get the entire picture. For starters, Kazu and Nagare remains as the main forces of the cafe.

This book opens with a direct reference to the fourth story of the first book due to the timey-wimey things in that story. So you're going to be lost if you haven't read those.

And even though the story is taking the reader into the breezy and calmer region of Hakodate with a new set of patrons and a new staff, the backstory of Café Donna Donna ties heavily to things about Kazu and Nagare's backstory that gets told in Book 1 and 2.

The new cafe is the first thing you see in the book. It has a better description that the Tokyo one and it looks rather unique, it actually makes me want to visit this nonexistent cafe in real life. The story being set in Hakodate also gives it a different, calmer vibe. I can actually picture myself sipping coffee in the balcony, looking at the rivers of Hakodate. “Bonny” by Prefab Sprout vibes wonderfully well with the new setting, in fact.

Something that this book also has in that there's a clear device that woven the stories. Several parts of the story contains snippets of stuff from the in-universe 'self-help' book “What If the World Were Ending Tomorrow? One Hundred Questions.” that I find interesting and adds to the message.

In addition, Reiji (the new waiter) and the patrons have little to no connections to the patrons of Funiculi Funicula in Tokyo so these are completely new set of people.

With a new set of stories, grief, and.....thoughts of death.

My love and I, we work well together. But often we're apart....Absence makes the heart lose wager, 'Till love breaks down, love breaks down...

New setting does not mean that we're starting from zero. The first story actually tries to subvert the typical formula that readers are accustomed to. Now, what if someone wants to go back to the past to curse and spit on someone for giving them a screwed-up life?

(this means that “Desire As” as Prefab Sprout immediately plays in my ears)

Although the way the story begins is pretty jarring, given that after pages of a normal day at the cafe you're immediately thrown with so much anger. The suicidal main character has so much pain and anger that her very reactionary personality and actions contrast heavily with the 'calm' setting. This, however, makes way for the story to turn into a Christmas Carol-like story where the main character sees the past and experiences a change of heart.

I admit, this was pretty damn effective for me. I actually cried at the end. The bleak, pessimistic main character with so much baggage....i feel her pain. I feel her woes and seeing her get better makes me tear up. It's such an escapist story by the end of the day, to go look at the core of your problems and actually face it —– and have it resolved.

And yes, it is one of those stories where the message ultimately boils down to “things will get better if you just admit your pain”, but I feel so doomed and sick of everything right now and this story is a comfort and a reminder for me to keep going, and how things will get better.

If you thought that the first story is bleak enough, the second actually answers the burning question that every reader of Book 1 and 2 might have asked to themselves: “So, if you stay in the past and not go back to the present, you die and become the ghost in the seat? Wouldn't someone attempt to kill themself this way, then?”

And it answers the question with little drama. For starters, the main characters of this story are a duo of comedians. While the book don't get to actually show in detail on what kind of manzai act they are (probably because the author can't write manzai but what do I know about comedy anyway), this choice in writing highlights how even the funniest smilers could go down the drain when emptiness that the death of a loved one hits them. The suicide ideation is devastating to read. And it hits hard. With zero funny ha-has.

This is very much a story that we need today. Emptiness is devastating, and it can lead to terrifying thoughts and actions. Even the brightest and happiest people could fall victim to the void.

But this story tells you that no, the glass isn't half-empty. Moving on with the feeling that your passing loved ones are supporting you and helping you fills the glass. The glass is ultimately, half-full after all. And certainly people want to fill yours too.

Oh my, Oh my, have you seen the weather? The sweet September rain

Rain on me, like no other Until I drown, until I drown

If you thought that this book will stop there, you're wrong. Third book directly tackles the problem of denying the pain from losing a loved one. The 'denial' phase of five stages of grief. Denial so great, that reality actually crumbles down.

Grief and Denial sometimes blurs reality that you'll run the risk of living in an invalid reality, and this book tackles this topic pretty well and concise enough without being too over-the-top. And it doesn't even add more fantasy elements (the TARDIS coffee is enough). It comes off as All Of Us Strangers (2023) without the fantasy elements.

The main character's pain is very hard to read, it's too real. There's nothing more devastating than dreaming of a passing loved one, thinking they're alive, only to wake up and find that they're no longer here. It really screws up your brain and it's not talked enough, and I'm glad that the third story brings this up.

Yes, the denouement and message of the story is corny. It's so schmaltz! it's so cheap! and yet, somehow, i -HAVE- to hear the message being said to me, as someone who had experienced a similar thing. It feels hopeful and got me rethinking about how to honor a passing loved one.

The fourth story is where it all wraps up. It's relatively less dramatic than the previous three stories as it suddenly shifts into something that you'd see in the first book: the pain of not being able to tell your feelings before it's too late.

What makes it different is that one of the problems that the characters face here is the inability to communicate well. Throughout the book series, this has been a source of many conflicts but most of the time the characters resolve this as soon as they get to do the time traveling bit. Here, it's still a problem even after the time traveling bit, and this leads to the book series's biggest message of 'living in the present' being reminded to the audience.

When love breaks down, the things we do, to stop the truth from hurting you, When love breaks down, the lies we tell, they only serve to fool ourselves.

SPOILER and TMI section!

The third story hit me the hardest because I understand Reiko's pain. You may recall in my post about the 2nd book where I mentioned that one of my best friends passed away.

I still dream of her months after she passed away. Then I woke up only to find that she's gone. It was a miracle that i did not develop any hallucinations during the early pandemic. Looking back, that was very strong of me, to not let 'invalid reality' invade my brain and distance me from people who support me.

For days, i couldn't accept reality. I cried for hours and again. There was a risk that my reality will break down and get me detached. It's a miracle that it didn't happen to me. But the pain made me numb. I feel pain, but i don't know what to do. I became aimless, in which I am facing the consequences from it today.

All because i couldn't smile because of her passing. It's actually pretty sad that it took me more than a year to finally accept my reality and stop moping and frowning over her passing —– through a hyperfixation that she'd be happy to see me showing joy out of. I once thought that my accomplishments would mean nothing now that she's gone, but so.....why shouldn't I be happy and proud? Why should my grief stop me from feeling joy? She would've been happy too, after all.

She'd be joyful if I keep living after her passing, she'd be disappointed if I see her passing as the end of my everyday life, as something that stops me from living in the present.

Everything will be OK. Death is not the end. And she'll be happy to hear that.

When love breaks down, the things we do, to stop the truth from hurting you, When love breaks down, the lies we tell, they only serve to fool ourselves.

And this ties back into the books —— the stories are touching the subject of suicide that comes from grief. It really, really is a very harsh problem. I get why this book had to do that. grief just kneecaps your life and progress if you don't know how to process it and if you don't know that you can overcome it by making your life grow bigger than your grief (while NOT denying it) and accept it as a part of life and move on.

A reason why I like this book series is for not overly-dramatizing grief, with the dramatic reactions being just reactions to it. the portrayal of grief gets realistic at times. and I've been there before.

Ultimately, installment is about....death and loss. There's a lot more death and the dread and grief that comes from it. The previous books are more about regrets, guilts, and goodbyes and now this one dives head-on to the topic of death...suicide ideation...emptiness....denial...and how living in the moment is the way to overcome that because we don't know when will death comes for us all.

As repetitive as the books are, the different themes of each book keeps it 'fresh'. each book has something different to say, and this is not an exception.

While I highly enjoyed the book, it's not the first work to tackle the topic of death this way. Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit had done this before with his masterfully devastating work Die Tomorrow (2017), tackling the similar topic on how death shouldn't be the thing that stops us from living our lives fully in the present. Death in serenity, as a closure, as the end of a chapter, as a fuel to live in the present.

This book is more focused on the latter. on how death shouldn't be something that stops us from living and doing better things.

Death shouldn't be a reason why you shouldn't find happiness and comfort. everyone dies in the end, after all. and the death of a loved one does not mean the death of our hearts and soul. nor does it mean that our lives are stopped in a stasis.

And also, we should not let death break love down.

Understandably, death can get people bewildered. Death can get people do baffling reactionary things to eachother. Death can change people for the worse. Death can cause guilt and depression. but now that we're still in the present...live in it as if death comes for us all.

Live as if the world is ending tomorrow.

SPOILER and TMI section ends

When love breaks down, the things we do, to stop the truth from hurting you, When love breaks down, you join the rest, who leave their hearts for easy sex

There's actually a lot to love for this book, from snippets from the aforementioned “What If the World Were Ending Tomorrow? One Hundred Questions.” book that can be fun for readers to answer themselves, seeing a duo of comedians with the name “PORON DORON”, the sudden shift to 'dark mode' (black page + white text) in the printed edition to depict a blackout, to a random Connecticut mention halfway through. It's certainly an improvement from the second book.

However, if I have to mention weaknesses —– it's the new characters. The Tokyo patrons all have distinct personalities that are easy to tell. You can immediately spot what kind of people they're like, as much as I had a problem with how the first book was written. In this book, the new patrons don't really go beyond their occupations, though I feel that Kawaguchi wanted this book to be less stage-y and more realistic but certain characters feel undercooked.

And also, Sachi....Kazu's 7 year old daughter has a very...interesting (read: baffling) characterization. How is she 7 years old and reads philosophy, a book compiling academic discourses on Picasso, and quantum mechanics?? Couple this with Miki's lapses of keigo in the second book and it's clear that author Toshikazu Kawaguchi has....interesting ideas of what kids under 10 are like. He really, really think Shounibyou is the same as Chuunibyou. He really thinks that kids aged 7 are the same as 14-year-old pretentious teenagers.

I understood that it's a way for her to read the fictional book so that the book's message and stories can be brought together, but the fact that she's 7 years old makes it jarring.

(but like for real, he thinks that shounibyou is 'kids reading philosophy and difficult topics they deem cool' and not 'acting out their favourite cartoons'.....except that the former is chuunibyou which happens to teenagers because they are teens!)

Unfortunately, I have to address yet another weakness, because, again, we have yet another weird writing about 'giving birth is a wonderful thing'. Because I really do not think that the question of “if you're inside your mother's womb and the world ends tomorrow, would you kill yourself or stay born?” was necessary at all. This, however, is limited to two passages so it wasn't as egregiously weird as similar stuff in the previous two books. I do hope it's no longer a thing in the fourth and fifth book...

I do admire how the 4th story doesn't do the “and we're gonna have kids” thing. It ends with an immediate future promise and ends there. This feels like another attempt to address the criticisms of the 4th story in the 1st book, which is alright to me.

That aside, I had a great time reading this book. Yes, the book still felt like an 80s ballad in book form, as was the previous two books —– but darker, this time. And again, that's not a bad thing. It's definitely what the books was going for and I can feel it fully.

We have seen what people would do if given the chance to go back to the past. Now we see that people will try to break from the clutches of loss and pain of the past to be in the present.

And once again, that's arguably what we need today.

Take a sip, and go back to the past. Say goodbye to tragedy, and plant the seeds of the future in the present.....before the coffee gets cold.

When love breaks down, when love breaks down....

And that concludes the month of coffee for me. I will, of course, read the fourth and fifth book as soon as they get translated, so stay tuned for more...

Note (because I can't put this anywhere): If you notice something, I've been repeating “Appetite” by Prefab Sprout during my journey in reading these three books. Well, you can see that it's because that the song and album happens to have similar themes as this book series.

This is a good opportunity to tell the story of why am I even reading this book series. See, it all started a month ago, in a boring morning, with me doing 80s British music shopping. And then, I found this song. I thought it was beautiful, but then I listened to the album version....and it's one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard. Before you know it, the song was on repeat in my ears. And then, I listened to “Appetite”, then the whole album (“When the Angels” is pretty good too!).

I thought that “Steve McQueen” is a beautiful, if not underrated album. I was imagining the perfect movie for this album, a slice-of-life movie about a shop that sells interesting items. Records, clothes from past eras, used music instruments, accessories, and such, with the stories focusing on the shopkeepers' sad stories and the patrons taking refuge from their pain through these items —– to represent the sophisti-pop sound of the album.

However, the album having a production work by Thomas Dolby means that the story needed a fantasy element. The fantasy element could represent his 'shiny/キラキラ' keyboard work and synths, along with the album's curious structure and wistful feeling that he brought into. And so I thought, what if these items can send its' buyers back in time to the past, to make them face their pain and resolve it, to ultimately live in the present?

The story sounded perfect in my head....and then I was informed that there's an actual book with the exact same premise (and was adapted into a movie as well, with a J-Drama adaptation coming soon). I just couldn't help myself and bought a copy of the first book immediately. And now here I am, finished with the third book, wistfully thinking about my own regrets, grief, and emptiness, and how to get myself back in my own two feet. And I will come back for the fourth and fifth book.

As for the forthcoming American movie adaptation...well....I don't know about that. All Of Us Strangers (2023) proves that you could make an English-language adaptation of Japanese books pretty well...and knowing that, I kind of hope that the American movie adaptation of Before the Coffee Gets Cold will be as good as the former.....though I wish it's being adapted as a British production and will feature two songs produced by Thomas Dolby, just like how All Of Us Strangers (2023) has two songs produced by fellow 80s mad scientist new waver Trevor Horn in the soundtrack.

[First posted on Tumblr in May 2, 2024]

#BookReview #BeforeTheCoffeeGetsCold #CafeFuniculiFunicula #ToshikazuKawaguchi #review #BeforeYourMemoryFades

And now I have thoughts and some words about myself....

I wrote my thoughts on the first book here, and as you can see, I liked the premise enough despite the MAJOR shortcomings, because I believe that when done well, the premise could be something profound and wonderful. Also I'm a sucker for both reflexive time travel plots and sad slice-of-life.

So, with the album “Steve McQueen” by Prefab Sprout playing in my ears, rainy days on my window, and lounging in my desk, I am back at to immerse in the wistful atmosphere of the story, ready to go back to the past before the coffee gets cold.

I am happy to report that the second book is better than the first! There are significant number of improvements here and there, and it seems that author Toshikazu Kawaguchi listened to some of the criticisms of the first one...

Upon finishing, it felt like a nice cup of coffee after a somber rainy day. Full thoughts and a little story about me under the cut.

Oh my, oh my. Have you seen the weather? The sweet September rain....

Upon finishing, it felt like a nice cup of coffee after a somber rainy day. Full thoughts and a little story about me under the cut.

First off, while the stories aren't that much different than the first book, there's a unifying theme that ties them all together that makes the book's message clearer. Now I know what this series is going for very well. I'll get to that later.

What about the characters that aren't Kazu and the patrons? Personally, it's great to see Nagare and Miki. Miki really is a good successor to Kei, but sometimes her childish antics feels a little forced. That's not to say she's not endearing. It's just that I wish she's better than being an exaggerated version of a 6-year-old.

The time travel element is also explored even more. The characters now make good use on what they can do with the power of temporary time travel and as a result, things gets pretty....creative, especially in the third story. And also, we finally get to know who the ghost in the cafe is....and it's real sad!

As for the stories itself, the book starts with a pretty solid one. Unlike the first book's first story that feels like nothing, this sequel starts with a strong tearjerker but with lines that'll make one smile. Yes, it's a standard “I want to meet you before you die for the happiness of my loved one” story, but the way this one is set up and done is just...wonderful. Definitely a strong opener that really showed what the book sells itself as. It promises me four sad stories, and I got a sad story RIGHT at the beginning. That's how you get me into a book.

And what's better than that? Guys being dudes!! The first story is just a wholesome 'guys being dudes' story, and quite escapist in some ways.

The “From now on....you have two fathers. It's me and your dad, who is my bestie” thing in the first story is just the best. I like how the characters didn't even question the implication behind one of them saying that his daughter has two dads now. In fairness, they're a lil bit too close to eachother....are they....yknow 👀👀

Second story felt like a retread of the first book's third story in that it is once again, about a dying relative, but there's something that made this second story great: the main character. He's 24, broke, has a degree in art, no prospects, and jobless. And he gets a nice ending. That alone made me like the story and honestly? I know that it's corny that his time travel fixes his life but it's a nice escapist story. I wish I can have his ending....

(seems that escapism is also a thing in this second book)

Now, the third story is unfortunately, where the book falters. I was having a good tearjerking time with the first two stories....until the third one. It actually starts off interestingly by starting with someone already doing the time travel thing instead of doing the 'cafe situation with Kazu/Nagare/patron –> introduction –> flashbacks –> time travel' structure that every other stories have. It breaks the repetition and this third story is commendable for that.

But....oh boy. Remember how the fourth story of the first book had weirdly-written stuff about pregnancy and how it idealises 'give birth even if it kills the mother'? Apparently there's a similar thing in this third story. I can't give the specifics but it's just. Jarring to see this author trying to write a character getting over a miscarriage by waxing poetic. Especially because the message is not that different from the other stories.

At the very least it's not a big plot point and the woman's reproductive issue isn't treated as the end of the world. Feels like this third story was the writer realizing that the fourth story of the first book did came out weird and rather unfortunate in its implications and attempted to give correction by reversing the genders of the characters? That's what I am getting.

While the third story managed to shake up the structure to not make the book repetitive, it is unfortunately, needlessly complicated. When a 'plan' sounds like technobabble when explained, that's when the plan might not be a good idea. It just makes the book look goofy and attempting to look 'quirky'.

However, credits where it's due: Fumiko, aka the main character of the first story of the first book is back and she's written better this time! No more 'moping for her boyfriend' kind of Fumiko! Finally, Fumiko gets to show her brain for once...even though it's kind of ruined by her boyfriend's weird technobabble comparing their situation to programming.

I do love the theme of the third story (sometimes we just lie to stop the truth from hurting others), it could've been done without the overly-convoluted setup.

Fourth story feels like a retread of a story from the previous book, and for some reason it needed to give readers a recap of the previous book. The main character is a detective here and I feel that Kawaguchi made him a detective as an excuse to do that. It doesn't make the reading experience 'less', mind you, but...was it really needed? These stories work well as stand-alones to begin with.

That being said, it's the story that ties the book's message together. Through this patron's time travel, we finally see what the author wanted to say, and ties it to everyone in the book. And one that ties back to the Cafe itself. See, in these stories, we mostly only know the patrons well. Their personalities, dreams, wishes, regrets, and grief....not a lot of room for us to get to know Kazu. We did get to know Nagare in the first book, but not much on Kazu and the cafe itself.

Like the third story, we get another shake-up in the formula. Now it's the rules of the time travel that gets shaken up. Now, something different happens. And this something ties back to Kazu.

When love breaks down, the things we do, To stop the truth from hurting you,

Yes, this book is about Kazu too. Crumbs of Kazu's backstory (related to the ghost in the cafe too) FINALLY gets revealed after nearly nothing from the first book and her near-passive role.

Though, a lot of Kazu's backstory gets crammed in the third story, with the first and second story only giving us small hints into Kazu's personality and life before the cafe, and why she's willing to send people back to the past. And when a lot of these travelers found happiness from the past —— what about Kazu? What does she get? Does she feel the same way?

This book delves into that, although mostly on the third and fourth story. I wish that it's not crammed in the two stories though. Would've tied the book better if all four stories have these moments with Kazu. It's a shame because the second story has a perfect opportunity to Kazu to question her agreement in sending people back to the past.

Like each story should've emphasized more on Kazu's shell breaking slowly. I would've loved to see Kazu's shell cracking in the fourth story. Not with dramatic whimpering, but with something that breaks Kazu's 'almost mechanical' actions. Like, make her more 'feeling'.

Personally, Kazu is my favourite character and she's why I'm still tuning in the book series. Helps that she's played by the wonderful Kasumi Arimura in the movie, and she's exactly how I pictured Kazu....it's easier to read the book while imagining Kasumi Arimura's Kazu.

The sudden focus on Kazu is a surprise, though it gives the book a new focus. While the first book completely focuses on the cafe sending people back in time and how it affects the patrons, the second book focuses on how it affects Kazu herself as the one who pours the “TARDIS coffee” on patrons.

The first book almost never questions Kazu's reactions, and the book makes her to be this precise, almost-mechanical person who just does what she's told to do. What we didn't know is that she hides a lot of pain and grief behind her sommelier smile. She looks like she could burst to tears anytime.

This book slowly shows the cracks in Kazu's precise, sharp personality. It makes her more human, because it's very hard to be a constant reminder of death, sadness, hurt, and pain, isn't it? At one point in the book, she even lies and forgets to do something important in the time travel ritual. Kazu is worried that she would cause love to break down.

There's a lot of words to describe Kazu, but I can't do that without spoiling a lot and getting off-track....let's just say “When Love Breaks Down”, the entire time, is about Kazu.

(You could make the case that this book should've been called “Before Love Breaks Down”, even)

And that brings me to what this book is saying, and what does it say about grief and survivor's guilt —– and happiness.

SPOILER and TMI section!

When love breaks down, the lies we tell, They only serve to fool ourselves.

This second book has heavy emphasis on survivor's guilt. Guilt from being the one who lives while your loved ones die, specifically. All the stories are about death and grief, which fits better with the premise.

“Are we allowed to feel happy with death and pain around us?”

That is the theme of the second book. It is a good theme, and I'm glad that this book is written with that as the main theme. It's corny (like a lot of 80s ballads are) but I do feel that. Sometimes, i feel that i do not deserve respite nor any smile after seeing and experiencing tragedies in life.

Four years ago, I lost one of my best friends. She passed away suddenly.

It's unfair that i get to live and have fun experiences with friends while she's six feet under. I thought that if I feel happiness, it's unfair because she couldn't, and my survival and long age is a curse I have to bear for her passing. But if there's anything I learned from that time two years ago when I had one of the happiest moments in my life, my happiness is what my she had wanted wanted. And my life isn't a curse.

I was so happy. I did feel guilty that she's not here to see it. But i went to the other direction: would she be happy that you get to have this moment? Would she be happy that your art skills got into this level? Would she be happy that you get to have something that is uniquely yours?

By feeling happiness, it's not just mine. It's hers.

And this book is saying that. Happiness is not something only you can have, or you cannot have. One's happiness is the happiness of others. And so is pain and sadness.

And this book is saying that. Happiness is not something only you can have, or you cannot have. One's happiness is the happiness of others. And so is pain and sadness.

Over the years, I've tried to live and move on. It is difficult to be a reminder that my survival is at the expense of hers. It is difficult to be a reminder that the world is not fair, and it is difficult to be happy knowing that she couldn't have it.

But, if I can share my happiness with people who are here with me, I could share it with those who are gone too.

My happiness is her happiness. And it will not break down.

The stories in this book really made me think that. It feels good to know that I wasn't alone in feeling cursed with age and happiness, but you can break it without having to completely surrender yourself to grief. Because grief is not forever. Sure, our lives mold around it instead of growing out of it, but making peace with it is the key to moving on.

And an important part of it is to accept that your happiness is their happiness too. If your life stops because of grief, wouldn't that made them sad also?

I'm glad that the book ends with Kazu realizing that she IS allowed to live in happiness and move on from her mother's death, and I'm glad that her seeing other people being able to be happy made her realize that she too, could have it.

This made the book better than the first.

SPOILER and TMI section ends

When love breaks down, you join the rest, Who leave their hearts for easy sex,

I got too emotional that I nearly forgot to actually give a verdict to the book. Sorry about that, this book made me more emotional than the first.

As for the writing itself, this sequel is markedly less stage-y. The writer is definitely getting more and more fluent in writing actual books.

Is it still corny? Yes. Like I've said before, the first book felt like an 80s ballad in book form, and so is this sequel. This sequel being more literary makes the '80s ballad' vibes and energy of the book even more apparent. To me, this whole entire book series is now compilations of 80s ballads. And that's not a bad thing! It feels like that's exactly what these books are going for, and it truly delivers.

(Even the fourth story has a brief flashback set in the 80s)

The first book asks us what we'll do if we get back to the past. The second book asks us how can we live in the present without having to let the past trap us.

And that's arguably what we need today.

Take a sip, and go back to the past. Face the past, walk to the present.....before the coffee gets cold.

....Once again, I had a good time in the unique coffeehouse that is Cafe Funiculi Funicula. Now I'm off to Hakodate to Cafe Donna Donna next, to take a sip of their coffee to reflect and live....

[First posted on Tumblr in April 20, 2024]

#BookReview #BeforeTheCoffeeGetsCold #CafeFuniculiFunicula #ToshikazuKawaguchi #review

So, I've been spending my week reading Before the Coffee Gets Cold (2015) solely for the premise. It's not quite sci-fi, but grounded enough to put me in a breeze.

At a glance, the premise of “a cafe that can get their patrons back in time but it can't change the present” intrigued me. Not to mention that I have the perfect album to listen to while reading, to immerse myself in the wistful, warm feeling of the premise.

The fact that the cafe cannot change the present gives the premise an opportunity to provide meaningful insights on how the looking into the past might not change the present, but it will give us will to live in the present and build our futures. Previously, I really loved Petite Maman (2021) for exploring a similar premise with similar insights and I was so stoked to hear that there are more stuff like this. Also, stories like this IS my bread and butter after all.

Now that I finished it.....it was a mixed experience. Full thoughts under the cut.

Absence makes the heart lose wager. 'Till love breaks down, love breaks down...

I grabbed the first book a few days ago and finished it. To tell the truth, I liked it, but the first and fourth story left a bitter aftertaste in my mouth. I hated how Fumiko was written and described in the first story.

It's just that....this doesn't feel right. I don't like how Fumiko is written as this smart genius omniglot woman who flails herself completely for a guy who isn't worth much? And making her entire angst revolving around wanting to marry someone because her siblings had gotten married? That's a rather weird way to write a female character in my personal opinion. And I have to admit that her physical description gets....weird. This I feel, is an artifact left from the book's original form as a stage play.

For a book that sells itself as full of heartwarming sad tales, the first story didn't do a lot for me. Maybe it's that the character's problems are quite trivial compared to the other three stories....kind of fitting as an introduction to the book's small world of Cafe Funiculi Funicula, I guess?

While I teared up at the end of the fourth story, I am admittedly growing tired of the glorification of “give birth anyway even if it kills the mother!” stories, especially those that are written by men. Which is a shame considering that I liked the focus character even though her characterization slides close to a manic pixie dream girl a few times. I do admire how the fourth story did explore the time travel concept further...I just wish that it was used in a better story.

While I loved the second and third story, the way the main character is written in the end where she basically gets a complete 180 to her parents felt way too unrealistic and a little insulting. I just...don't feel great seeing the main character just leaves her independent life to serve her parents even if it's her shared dream with her sister and she's doing it to honor her. It CAN be done...but not this sudden. It should've had more time rebuilding her relationships with her parents.

I didn't find anything objectionable with second story besides the maiden name thing (i find it rather off) —– and I did cry at the end of the story. It's the best part of the first book for me, and it's why I decided to continue on with the book series, since the book series reportedly gets better and better by each sequel.

Another thing that held back the first book's potentials besides the writing of the first and the fourth story is the writing style. This book was adapted from a stage play, and you can tell that writer Toshikazu Kawaguchi struggled with translating the story from stage form to literary form. The writing felt like someone who is writing a book in a language they're not fluent at (in this case, a playwright writing literature), and as a result, some parts can feel too 'stage-y' instead of occurring naturally.

Rain on me, like no other. Until I drown, until I drown...

The book's tone is....stage-y. And sometimes feel corny in a similar way that The Fault in Our Stars is. However, this book manages to cultivate an atmosphere that feels like being in a cafe, so it's not that corny after all....actually, I have a better description.

If i can describe this book's tone as music, I would describe it as an emotional, easy-listening 80s ballad with a melancholic tone, complete with synthesizers (by someone like Thomas Dolby.....like in the song I linked above). The kind of 80s ballad you'd hear in a peaceful cafe at night, but in book form.

(I say 80s ballad since it's NOT for everyone. In fact, 80s ballad feels like one of those things that people tend to dislike about the 80s....feels fitting for this book, honestly, since people are mixed or feeling conflicted about it despite their enjoyment or dislike!)

Neverthless, it's still a unique light read for a rainy day, or a wistful night at the cafe. It did say what it wanted to say pretty well.

We all wax poetic about fixing our present and future but what if we get to do it? What are we going to say? What are we going to feel? How are we going to look at our past, even? And if the present can't be changed, what's it all for, then? This book gives nice insights about this dilemma without having to worry about pesky concepts such as 'grandfather paradox' or 'time crash'.

Ultimately this is why I still liked this book despite the glaring faults. The premise is really good, and with the right writing, it could be something amazing (Celine Sciamma has proven that it could, after all!) and heartfelt. The story's approach to time travel is still something pretty rare, and the almost-anthological nature of the series makes me sure that there are better stories in the sequels.

Reading that the sequels gets better and better makes me excited to dive more into Cafe Funiculi Funicula and eventually, Cafe Donna Donna.

Take a sip, and go back to the past. Say what you want....say your feelings.....before the coffee gets cold.

When love breaks down, the things we do, to stop the truth from hurting you. When love breaks down, the lies we tell, they only serve to fool ourselves.

....Overall, I had a good time in the unique coffeehouse that is Cafe Funiculi Funicula. This was a pretty difficult review since I rarely write book reviews.

I'm off to read the second book, while imagining what I'd do if I could go back before the coffee gets cold....

[First posted on Tumblr in April 14, 2024]

#BookReview #BeforeTheCoffeeGetsCold #CafeFuniculiFunicula #ToshikazuKawaguchi #review