Review: Tales from the Cafe (Before the Coffee Gets Cold #2) by Toshikazu Kawaguchi |《Reread》

5 stars for Tales from the Cafe (Before the Coffee Gets Cold book 2) by Toshikazu Kawaguchi |《Reread》.

After reading this book a second time, I decide to change my rating for this book from previous 4-star rating to a 5.

I have no idea why I didn't feel it the last time I read this book, but perhaps the level and depth I felt then was different. Reading this book again now, I am very much touched by the second and third story; they are sad yet heartwarming at the same time. Also, I feel that the last story is brilliantly crafted. Through a newly introduced character, detective Kiyoshi, the author manages to do an excellent summary of the people who have travelled back in time. To quote "...over the last thirty years, forty-one people have sat in that chair and travelled back in time. They each had their own reasons for doing so, to meet a lover, a husband, a daughter and so forth, but of those forty-one people, four returned to the past to meet someone who had died. There were two last year, one seven years ago, and then there was your mother twenty-two years ago... four people." Through detective Kiyoshi, readers are reminded once again of the stories of key characters who have returned to the past even after knowing that it is not possible to change the present no matter how hard they try while in the past.

Whether a person chooses to go back in time to visit a family member or a good friend, or visit someone in the future in this cafe, time-travelling to right a wrong does not mean having to change the present, which in any case, the rule does not allow the present to be changed, but even so, without changing the present, it does make a difference to see that someone again. There is always something to learn from the people who have gone back. Regardless of their reasons for returning to the past, there is one thing common among these people - they found inner peace upon their return from the time travel.

Once again, after reading this book, all I want to do is to find one such time-travelling cafe and be a regular there. Why is it that this kind of cafe only exist in books and not in real life?

What will you do if you are given the chance to return to the past?
Who will you want to meet?

Review: Before the Coffee Gets Cold (Before the Coffee Gets Cold #1) by Toshikazu Kawaguchi |《Reread》

5 stars for Before the Coffee Gets Cold (Before the Coffee Gets Cold book 1) by Toshikazu Kawaguchi |《Reread》.

I have read the first three novels in this series before I decide to recommend it to a Japanese boss-turned-friend. That was easily two years ago, or perhaps more as we sometimes lose track of time. I remember I envied him at that time for being able to read the original Japanese books when I can only read the English translated version where inevitably meanings get lost through translation. It turned out that this Japanese friend enjoys the story so much that he finished reading all five books (published and available) in succession.

In an unexpected twist of events, the one who recommends the books becomes the one who is being recommended. He strongly recommends that I continue to read the books and shares with me that the latest book 5 Before We Forget Kindness published in 2024 is his favourite. Well, where favourites are concerned, his and mine are polar opposites. My favourite was and still is book 1 Before the Coffee Gets Cold. Back then, I felt that book two and three did not live up to my expectations and the stories turned confusing after a while what with the time travelling - back to the past and forward to the future. That was the reason I did not follow up with book 4 in the series. That was Year 2022 then. Should I decide to continue, I will have to read from book 1 again. I simply cannot imagine myself picking up book 4 and start reading when so much of the story and characters have been lost on me.

Re-reading a book feels like visiting an old friend or a familiar old location. I sure am glad to revisit cafe Funiculi Funicula, the time-travelling cafe located in Tokyo with a unique name. I stand by the 5-star rating I gave to this book back in 2022. After I finish reading this book, I felt exactly the same as how I felt three years ago, that is, all I want to do is to visit one such cafe and be a regular there. If only such a cafe is in existence...

What will you do if you are given the chance to return to the past?
Who will you want to meet?