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�I was so absorbed in the things that I couldn’t change, I forgot the most important thing.�

If you could return to the past, but knew you couldn’t change anything, what would you go for? Before The Coffee Gets Cold, the debut novel by Japanese playwright Toshikazu Kawaguchi and translated into English by Geoffrey Trousselot, is a warm and quirky time-travel story all confined into the singular space of a small Tokyo coffee shop. Originally a play, which may have been a better medium as the book occasionally feels like a film novelisation with pacing issues, the story stands on the strength of it’s small cast of characters as they support and empathize with one another and, in turn, win over our empathy. The time travel is complete with its own mythology and a ghost, none of which make all that much sense but it works in order to examine the emotional obstacles that exist between people (if quirky and heartwarming time travel is your thing, though, just watch because it's amazing). It is a unique take on the genre that seems certain of itself as a heartwarming tear-jerker and is successful at being moving although some of the stories are a bit eyebrow-raising (the final story is a theme I dislike). A bit rough around the edges, Before the Coffee Gets Cold is a rather cute and moving idea with plenty of emotional scenes that will certainly charm many despite the execution not quite living up to the premise.

' The truth just wants to come flowing out. This is especially the case when you are trying to hide your sadness or vulnerability.'

The hook for this book is certainly the time travel aspect, the mechanics of which falls apart under careful scrutiny, sure, but this isn’t hard scifi and ultimately it serves as an engaging and charming plot vessel to look at interpersonal relationships. There is a strict set of rules that grow with each stories which makes for some absurd fun as the characters are often bewildered by how restrictive they are to the point of almost rendering the time traveling useless. The biggest one being that �at the end of the day, whether one returns to the past or travels to the future, the present doesn't change.� Add on to this that you can only be back in time until your coffee gets cold or face horrible consequences, and the spacial limitations for traveling seem like a marketing trick to force someone to be a regular at the shop in order for the time traveling to even conceivably be useful.

All of these limitations make sense for a stage production with only one set, and, ultimately, that medium feels better fit for this story. At times it feels like over-direction as well, as if this book is giving notes for what is probably an inevitable film adaptation, with awkward overemphasis on the outfits and colors each character wears. Having it as a novel does give more insight into the characters and provide backstory and context, but so much was already done well with the dialogue it feels almost unnecessary. It might have been more effective had it not made the pacing so jumpy, with flashbacks constantly interrupting the scenes and drawing the tension out in a way that feels like the elimination round scenes in a reality show where you just want to get to the point.

What transpires is frequently moving, with much of the emotional weight pinned on long held secrets or insecurities finally being revealed. The second story is particularly effective and deals with alzheimers, though at this point it seems the novel puts a lot of emphasis on women sacrificing themselves and being expected to give endless emotional labor as a heroic act. Which, particularly in the final section becomes rather annoying. The final story involves sacrificing one’s health for a pregnancy and like, maybe men should cool off the “women dying in childbirth for emotional effect� trope because it’s not awesome, though another story involves a woman giving up her life and business to return to a family business she dislikes. It just feels a bit not great, but he does mine these scenarios for some particularly tearful scenes.

Before the Coffee Goes Cold has a lot of mechanical and thematic issues that didn’t work for me, but overall it succeeds as being a cozy and emotionally taxing read. I suspect a lot of people will be really moved by it and I’m sure will find it very heartwarming. Reading this does make me want to see the play and I quite enjoyed all the time travel aspects, particularly the ghost element that was playful and really worked to add texture to the story. A fun read, though not one I’m particularly fond of, but effectively shows the message that �it takes courage to say what has to be said.�

2.5/5