(Version 1) Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi—A Bittersweet and Tender Exploration of the Past, the Present, and What Truly Matters, Fiction, Softcover

Book 2: Tales from the Cafe

Book 3: Before Your Memory Fades

Book 4: Before We Say Goodbye

Before the Coffee Gets Cold (Book 1) by Toshikazu Kawaguchi - Book Description:

In a small back alley in Tokyo, there is a café which has been serving carefully brewed coffee for more than one hundred years. But this coffee shop offers its customers a unique experience: the chance to travel back in time.

In Before the Coffee Gets Cold, we meet four visitors, each of whom is hoping to make use of the café’s time-travelling offer, in order to: confront the man who left them, receive a letter from their husband whose memory has been taken by early onset Alzheimer's, to see their sister one last time, and to meet the daughter they never got the chance to know.

But the journey into the past does not come without risks: customers must sit in a particular seat, they cannot leave the café, and finally, they must return to the present before the coffee gets cold . . .

Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s beautiful, moving story explores the age-old question: what would you change if you could travel back in time? More importantly, who would you want to meet, maybe for one last time?

Is this book for you?

If you could sit in a quiet little café and travel through time, would you? Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi takes you to a small, tucked-away café in Tokyo where visitors can go back to the past—or even glimpse the future—but only under strict and unchangeable rules. More than just a time-travel story, this book is about regret, love, and the fleeting moments that shape our lives. One reader described it as “absolutely beautifully written, incredibly unique... almost everyone can empathize with it.” Despite the magical premise, the emotions feel deeply real, making you reflect on the people and choices in your own life.

What makes this book so special is how it handles loss and longing with such a gentle touch. It’s not a sad book in the traditional sense, yet it leaves a profound ache in your heart. As one reader put it, “It approaches topics like loss so gently, so quietly, and so unassumingly that it almost feels warm in an odd little way. I felt safe within the pages.” Through different characters and their second chances—whether it’s reconnecting with a lost love, making amends with family, or simply saying the words left unsaid—you’ll see yourself in their stories. And even though the past cannot be changed, the book shows how understanding and closure can be just as powerful.

This novel is short, yet its impact lingers long after you turn the final page. Another reader shared, “It’s rare that a book under 200 pages can make me feel so whole and complete, yet this silly little book has managed to do exactly that.” It’s a book that stays with you, not because of shocking twists or grand adventures, but because it quietly reminds you to cherish the present, the people you love, and the small, seemingly ordinary moments that make up a life. If you’ve ever wished to revisit a single moment, even just for a short while, Before the Coffee Gets Cold will touch your heart in ways you never expected.

A Sample Quote?