Tales from the Café by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

There’s something magical about the aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafting through a cozy café on a crisp autumn day. It has the power to transport us—to cherished memories, to hopes for the future, to a moment of quiet reflection amidst life’s chaos. In Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s enchanting novel Tales from the Cafe, this transportive power of coffee becomes literal, as patrons of a small Tokyo establishment are given the extraordinary opportunity to travel back in time.

But like any potent brew, this gift comes with caveats that are both frustrating and profound. The rules are strict: you can only meet people who have visited the café before, you cannot change the present no matter what you do in the past, and you must return before your coffee gets cold. Oh, and there’s the small matter of turning into a ghost if you don’t finish your drink in time. Talk about a caffeine rush, huh?

A Second Serving of Bittersweet Magic

Tales from the Cafe is the second book in Kawaguchi’s wildly popular Before the Coffee Gets Cold series, following the 2019 international bestseller of the same name. While the first book introduced us to the magical Café Funiculi Funicula and its time-traveling chair, this sequel expands the cast of characters and delves deeper into the emotional core of Kawaguchi’s premise.

For readers new to the series, don’t worry—Kawaguchi provides enough context to jump right in. But I’d argue the real magic lies in experiencing both books, as recurring characters and subtle connections enrich the overall tapestry.

Four New Tales, Steeped in Emotion

The novel is structured as four interconnected short stories, each focusing on a different patron’s journey to the past:

• A man seeks to mend a rift with his best friend who died 22 years ago
• A son, wracked with guilt, travels back to see the mother whose funeral he missed
• A man returns to a pivotal moment with the woman he couldn’t marry
• An aging detective uses his last chance to give a meaningful gift to his late wife

These premises might sound melodramatic on paper, but Kawaguchi’s gentle, understated prose infuses each tale with genuine poignancy. The time travel element, while central to the plot, often feels secondary to the raw human emotions at play.

The Bittersweet Aftertaste of Time Travel

What fascinates me most about Kawaguchi’s approach is how he uses the limitations of his time travel conceit to explore deeper themes. The inability to change the present forces characters (and readers) to confront difficult truths: that closure doesn’t always come in the form we expect, that a single moment can hold multiple meanings, and that sometimes, the act of trying to make amends is more important than the outcome.

Take the story of Yukio, the son who missed his mother’s funeral. His initial plan to use time travel as an escape from guilt evolves into a profound moment of self-reflection and healing. It’s a beautiful illustration of how facing our past—even when we can’t change it – can be transformative.

A Café Filled with Familiar Faces

While the four main stories stand alone, the real heart of the novel lies in the café itself and its small cast of recurring characters. Kazu, the enigmatic waitress, continues to be a quiet pillar of strength. We get glimpses of her tragic past that deepen our understanding of her cool demeanor. Nagare, the towering but kind-hearted owner, provides moments of levity. And then there’s Miki, Nagare’s precocious daughter, whose enthusiasm for taking on the mantle of time-travel barista is both endearing and a little nerve-wracking (I mean, would you trust a seven-year-old with that kind of power?).

The woman in the white dress, a ghostly presence from the first book, continues to be a source of mystery and melancholy. Her story unfolds in fragments, a reminder of the potential consequences of meddling with time.

A Dash of Magical Realism, A Sprinkle of Nostalgia

Kawaguchi’s writing style is deceptively simple. His prose isn’t flashy, but it’s imbued with a gentle lyricism that suits the story perfectly. He has a knack for finding profound meaning in small details—the way someone holds a coffee cup, the subtle shift in the café’s atmosphere as the seasons change.

The magical realism elements are handled with a light touch. There’s no elaborate explanation for how the time travel works; it simply is. This allows the focus to remain squarely on the characters and their emotional journeys.

There’s also a lovely thread of nostalgia running through the book. The café itself feels like a relic from another era, immune to the frantic pace of modern Tokyo. This sense of timelessness enhances the overall mood, creating a space where past and present can seamlessly intertwine.

Not Just a Rehash of the First Blend

While Tales from the Cafe follows a similar structure to its predecessor, it’s not simply a retread. Kawaguchi deepens the mythology of the café, exploring the rules of time travel in more detail and hinting at its origins. We also get a more nuanced look at the emotional toll of being the café’s guardians, particularly through Kazu’s storyline.

The new characters bring fresh perspectives, and their stories touch on themes only hinted at in the first book. There’s a stronger emphasis on regret and the weight of words left unsaid, but also on the possibility of finding peace with the past.

A Few Grounds for Criticism

While I found Tales from the Cafe deeply moving overall, it’s not without its flaws. The rigid structure of the four stories can feel a bit formulaic at times. Some readers might find the pace a little slow, especially if they’re expecting more traditional time travel hijinks.

The rules of the café, while interesting, can occasionally feel like plot constraints rather than organic world-building. There were moments where I wanted to see characters push against these boundaries more forcefully.

Additionally, the translation by Geoffrey Trousselot, while generally smooth, has a few awkward phrasings that pulled me out of the story. It’s a minor quibble, but worth noting for readers sensitive to translation issues.

A Satisfying Second Cup

Despite these small criticisms, Tales from the Cafe is a worthy follow-up to Kawaguchi’s debut. It retains the quiet charm and emotional resonance of the first book while expanding the world in intriguing ways.

For fans of the series, this is a must-read. It answers some lingering questions from the first book while leaving plenty of mystery for future installments. New readers can certainly enjoy it as a standalone, but I’d recommend starting with Before the Coffee Gets Cold for the full experience.

Looking Ahead: More Brews on the Horizon

The success of the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series has been nothing short of phenomenal. What started as a stage play has now spawned five novels, with the most recent, Before We Forget Kindness, released in Japan in 2022.

English readers can look forward to Before Your Memory Fades (2022) and Before We Say Goodbye (2023), continuing the adventures at Café Funiculi Funicula. Based on the strength of the first two books, I’m eagerly anticipating these new installments.

Final Sips: A Recommendation

Tales from the Cafe is a perfect read for those moments when you need a break from the frenetic pace of everyday life. It’s a book best savored slowly, like a carefully brewed cup of coffee on a lazy afternoon.

Kawaguchi’s gentle exploration of regret, redemption, and the power of human connection resonates long after the last page is turned. It’s a reminder that while we can’t change the past, how we choose to remember it and move forward can profoundly shape our present.

So, grab a warm drink, find a cozy spot, and let yourself be transported to this magical little café in Tokyo. Just remember to finish your coffee before it gets cold—you never know where (or when) you might end up.

Pairs Well With:

• The Midnight Library by Matt Haig – Another exploration of alternate lives and second chances, with a dash of magical realism.
• If Cats Disappeared from the World by Genki Kawamura – A whimsical yet profound Japanese novel about life, death, and the choices we make.
• A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman—for its similar blend of humor, heart, and reflection on human connections.

And of course, a steaming cup of your favorite coffee. You might just find yourself lost in thought, wondering what moment in time you’d revisit if given the chance. Just be sure to drink up before it gets cold!