Book of the Month: Before the Coffee Gets Cold

This is the second book by a Japanese author to feature as a book of the month this year. This time the author is Toshikazu Kawaguchi, a playwright who is also the author of a series of short novels about a Tokyo café where patrons can time travel.

Before the Coffee Gets Cold is the first book in the series, and also the most important instruction to the would-be time traveller. You get a magical cup of coffee and you have the length of time before it gets cold to drink it, or get trapped in the past.

There is no explanation given for why people can travel through time in the café. For me, the story is better for not trying to explain it. The mechanism is mysterious and magical and ultimately, it doesn't matter how people time travel as much as who travels and why. 

There are four stories in this book - a girlfriend wanting to see her boyfriend again, a wife wanting to see her husband before dementia took him away, a woman who wants to see her sister, and a mother wanting to see her daughter. They are all poignant. The wife's story packed the biggest emotional punch, but they were all a blend of hopeful melancholy.

My only criticism would be the occasional 'fact drops'. For example, the author references Pablo Picasso and then includes a potted history of Picasso's career and transitions between his artistic styles and periods. I don't think the story needed that, but this was written for a Japanese audience originally and I simply don't know how au fait that audience would be with Picasso or the concept of artists having different stylistic periods. (Being honest, the context was probably necessary for the majority of English readers too.)

I bought this book in TK Maxx on a bit of a whim, won over by the cover blurb. The overall design of the cover is very attractive too. However, while I enjoyed the concept and the stories of the different time travellers, I don't plan to seek out the rest of the series. 

4 days in Malaga

I was very fortunate to go on a long weekend to Malaga, with my (almost lifelong) friend, Jim, who used to live there and so knew how to find the real city that many tourists miss. 

It felt like we went on the opposite of a 'lads weekend' because we actively avoided the tourist trap bars full of other holidaymakers. Our main focus was going to watch Malaga FC play a home game. We booked some extra days either side of matchday just in case the game time changed - and then it got scheduled for late on the Sunday evening. 

So we did some tourism stuff. The extra days gave us time for plenty of sightseeing and tapas. One of the main sights to see in Malaga is the Alcazaba Castle. We then climbed the hill behind Alcazaba to the Gibralfaro Castle on the top. The views across the city were incredible. 

We could see the football ground in the distance too!

We saw the beach

And the lighthouse in the port

Went to the Picasso Museum

And the Cathedral

Had delicious seco at Picasso's favourite bar, which serves fortified wine from barrels and has authentic sticky floors

Had churros at Casa Aranda

Were entertained by chatterbox parakeets in the park. They were in raucous nest-building mode.

The parakeets avoided the free-range cactus

And most of all just enjoyed walking round and discovering stuff!

I've got to say a big thank you to Jim for being such a great guide, sorting out so much of the travel admin, and being a patient translator when I asked him what some random words meant! Both of us felt sad when the trip drew to a close and we had to head out to the airport. At least we got to ride on a train before getting on a plane!