Recently, I’ve been taking part in not only some book clubs, but also buddy reads! Recently Emma from Words and Peace reached out to me about buddy reading Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi. This book has been on my radar for a while, so I was very happy she asked if we could read it together! We just finished the book, and have been taking part in discussions for each part. In case you missed any, here are our previous discussions:

Pre-Read 

Part One 

Part Two

Part Three

The Questions (Spoilers Ahead!)

1. What did you think about the return of previous characters in the last part? What was your reaction to the return of the girl from part 3?

Emma: It was kind of neat to tie up loose ends, like for instance with the explanation of who this young girl we had briefly met earlier is.
Also, as you had predicted, the staff is much more involved here, and that definitely gave more depth to the place.
And I liked seeing the characters we had seen earlier. It definitely felt like a play, when you call back all the players at the end.

Julie Anna: I enjoyed the call back as well! I think for the type of book that this was that it was nice to have that wrap-up element to it. I like Fumiko’s role in the last part as well and how seamless her return was to the cafe. I wasn’t expecting to see her again, so I thought that was really nice.

Getting to know who the young girl at the time we did was great as well. There was just enough time between her first appearance and seeing her again that that connection was sort of an ‘aha’ moment.

2. Did you think it was possible to go to the future?

Emma: I didn’t think of that at all, and it’s definitely not something I would like to do. I think it would make life even more complicated than it is, lol! Though I kind of understand why the mother would want to do that, to know better what she’s supposed to do in her health circumstances.

Julie Anna: I didn’t think this was a possibility, either! Since we had so many rules explained at the beginning, I figured any possibility of going to the future would have been explained then. I understand her rationale for traveling to the future as well, but agreed – it would be scary to do!

3. Was there anything you wish was explored that wasn’t? 

Emma: Yes, I wanted to know more about “the ghost”! I felt some type of revelation about her was needed, but it never came. Though for once, she has some type of communication with the other characters with her gentle blink to Kei (page 185). But as she goes to the bathroom, we’ll never see her again.
On the last page, they talk about “the chair”. That’s the essential element, and it looks like the ghost is just there to keep that place busy to give time to the characters to reflect if and why they want to time travel. Instead of rushing too fast on their trip.
Also, I would have liked explanations on the name of the café. But I guess knowing these things more in details would have been outside the ambiance designed by the author (see your last question here).

Julie Anna: I was curious to see if we’d learn more about the ghost as well! I feel like part of her character was also the role of the “comic relief” character that you’d see in a play. But to hear about her origin and why she’s there would have been really interesting. On a similar note, I would have liked to see a story about a character that didn’t drink the coffee before it got cold. I see why that story wasn’t told; I think that would make the book a bit more horror-like! But I found myself really wanting to know what happened to people that waited too long.

4. Kei mentions that she shouldn’t have time traveled and that, while the visits brought closure for the other characters, they changed nothing. But later on, she thinks back to what those characters did in their present. What did you think of this part? Did their lives change? Was it worth it for them?

Emma: I think that’s the key and beauty of the book. Even though at the beginning it may have sound weird that the time travel wouldn’t change anything to the present, now we discover the fact is nuanced. The point was not to change events but to change the heart. It’s an inner transformation that fits well with a lot of classic Japanese novels I have read recently. I definitely think their lives are now richer, with much more meaning, and stronger relationships. I see it as a nice invitation to take time to reflect before acting too fast in our lives, and to pay more attention to people around us. Nothing and no one is to be taken for granted.

Julie Anna: I think there’s so much potential for discussion in this being the central theme of the book. I think there are some situations where the characters may have questioned the worth of time traveling after going through it. But either way, even if the time travel doesn’t change anything, it changes their viewpoint and their actions to follow. So in a sense, it did have that “butterfly effect” so they were equipped to deal with their present and future. And for the characters that were upset to find out what they did, it seems like over time they were able to work with what they had learned and incorporate it into their lives for the better.

5. This book takes a magical realism approach to time travel as opposed to a sci-fi approach, where the technical details may have been more explained. Did you like the execution of time travel in this story, or did you find yourself wanting to know more?

Emma: I love scifi, but I actually really enjoyed the mysterious way of time travelling through drinking a special coffee while sitting on a special chair. Yes, I wanted to know more (ghost especially), but that’s my French side of the brain, lol. I have read enough Japanese novels (for instance Haruki Murakami!) to also appreciate that mist of mystery lingering over the scene. Plus really, that’s life, with few answers available.

Julie Anna: I’m a big sci-fi reader as well, and I always enjoy technical explanations for things (with the more accuracy, the better). But I really liked the approach here, and I think it made much more sense for what the story was really about. I think having more explanation behind the time travel would have taken away from the story and themes of the novel. I’m not as familiar with common themes of Japanese novels myself, so I didn’t realize this was a trend. That being said, I’m definitely interested in exploring this further!

6. What were your overall impressions of the book? 

Emma: I loved it, especially the gentle overall ambiance, and the focus on relationships.
A friend started reading it and stopped, thinking it was too sad. Yes, there are some sad scenes, but all the characters come back from their time travel with a renewed understanding of their life, and a determination to live it meaningfully. That’s extremely positive to me. I think lots of people feel miserable in our world because they can’t seem to find any meaning to what they are going through. If there’s a clear goal, you can go more easily through a tough time.

Julie Anna: I really enjoyed reading this one! Admittedly it took me a bit to adjust in the beginning, but as the story went on I really grew to appreciate the way this story was told. I liked the references to this originally being a play and it made me miss reading screenplays and the storytelling elements of them. I also liked how we got immense background on the characters before traveling with them. I thought this brought so much more meaning to the story and the impact time travel had on them.

7. Would you visit this cafe if you could?

Emma: At the beginning, I was disappointed by the gloomy atmosphere of this basement café. Now, I see it differently. The setting itself is like a cocoon for these lives to transform, like for butterflies to emerge from the chrysalis.
Yes, I would definitely visit. Not to sit on that special seat nor drink that special coffee, but I am sure they serve there all kinds of other delicious coffees. And mostly, I would love to meet these people, as they are in their present life, and chat with them. Maybe I could become friend with Fusagi, and he could share his pictures from his trips, and I could ask him all kinds of questions of the places he visited.

And maybe we could meet there and chat more about books!
Thanks so much, it was really neat reading this book together.

Julie Anna: I feel like I imagine bright atmospheres for cafes myself. But now that I think about it, being from a more populated area of New York, most of the cafes I frequent are pretty dark (and coincidentally all near train stations as well!). I didn’t think about the cafe being dark for that reason, but I it makes a lot of sense! I also think the darkness adds to not knowing where they are in time.

I’d like to visit as well! It seems so quiet and friendly, and I would love to get to know the characters (especially the employees). I wouldn’t time travel though! I’d be a bit afraid to, especially knowing that you only get one chance to do it. It seems like they have a big menu as well, which is always a plus! It sounds like a great place to talk about books too. Thank you for inviting me to do this buddy read!

If you read Before the Coffee Gets Cold, what were your overall thoughts on the book? Would you visit the cafe, or take advantage of its magical abilities? Let us know!