Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

September 15, 2024

Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

In a little coffee house on a Tokyo side street, there is an urban legend that visitors who sit in a certain chair can time travel and meet someone from another time in their life. But it's risky: there are rules and conditions, and the most important rule is that you only have as much time as it takes for a cup of coffee to grow cold. If you don't drink the coffee during that time period, there are dire consequences. Knowing this, a number of regulars at the cafe are still willing to take the risk.

A short book with an interesting concept about being able to time travel yet not change anything in the present. Slow moving, character driven with the characters' lives and stories being intertwined. All of the characters have some regret or something left undone that they want to correct if possible. Some readers have complained about the quality of the writing, but that may be due to the fact that the book is translated from the Japanese. There is a certain amount of repetition of the rules and limitations that wasn't necessary after the first time. Overall, I was left with a feeling of sweet sadness, which I didn't need at the time. I also felt disappointed - I thought the story could have been a lot more.

Tokyo

The Miracles of the Namiya General Store by Keigo Higashino

January 22, 2020

The Miracles of the Namiya General Store by Keigo Higashino

After committing a robbery and having their getaway car break down, three amateur criminals hide out in an abandoned general store. To their surprise, envelopes begin dropping through the mail slot, most of them stating a problem and requesting advice, but some thanking the store owner for advice given in the past.  The three wannabe crooks decide to answer the letters, first as a joke, and then in an earnest attempt to actually be of some help.

The plot (if you can call it a plot) focuses on an old fashioned general store that has been closed for decades, and a nearby orphanage that all of the characters are connected to in some way.  The store exists in a kind of time warp – inside the store, it’s 30 years in the past, while time outside the store runs normally.  Rather than a straightforward novel format, the story consists of a series of inter-connected vignettes, often transitioning to another character's story with little or no explanation.  It’s a quick read and overall optimistic with a certain charm, but a lot of it felt like the author wanted to write about some of his favorite things, like the Beatles.  One of my complaints is that there is no real ending – the reader ends up with the three guys sitting around the general store looking at each other with their eyes twinkling – what is that supposed to mean?  I understand that the author is a well-known mystery writer in Japan, and that this is his first effort outside the mystery genre.  Maybe it was the translation that made it seem clunky.  

The Traveling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa

June 26, 2019

The Traveling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa

A sweet warm story about a stray cat taken in by a Japanese man.  After living together for five years, Satoru realizes that he needs to find a new home for his beloved cat Nana.  They travel around Japan in Satoru’s silver van, visiting Satoru’s friends to find just the right place for Nana.  The narrative alternates between Nana’s voice, the other animals in the story, and the humans who surround them.  Nana (who is a male cat) is quite an entertaining little guy, making wry observations/comments on the differences between humans, cats, and dogs.  I’m actually a dog person but loved this story about a guy and the cat he loves.

Of course the story isn’t really just about a guy and his cat – it’s about unconditional love, between Satoru and his family, between Satoru and his friends, but mostly between Satoru and his cat.  I lost my beloved golden retriever Luke last year, so I know how an animal can be your best friend, and the bond between the two of you.  Yes, you will be sobbing at the end, but you will also have laughed and taken a wonderful road trip.

Because it’s a very special thing – to have your own cat (or dog) in your home.