A scene from the movie version of Before the Coffee Gets Cold which was released in 2018
The Tyneside Book Club headed to Japan for coffee and time travel for March's meeting. Before the Coffee Gets Cold follows the staff and customers of an unusual cafe where if a customer sits in a certain seat they can travel through time.
Members found the book easily accessible, and felt there were some good ideas within it. The book's origins as a play were readily identifiable, and some members wondered whether it would have worked better on the stage, or perhaps even on screen (it had been made into a film in 2018).
Some members did find the writing a little clunky, though that could have been more to do with the translation than the original material. There was some repetition, and points were hammered home a little too regularly. Some felt the book laboured a little over the multiple rules that surrounded the time travel. There was though some enjoyment to be had in immersing the reader in a book that did feel distinctively Japanese in its approach.
Some members found the time travelling rules did keep the book focused though and ensured the author remained in control of the material. There was appreciation for the ideas and the thoughtful nature of the book. It did make you consider how you might use time travel to see someone you had lost, or try and recapture a moment.
There were some members who thought the book did lurch towards sentimentality at times, particularly in the final story about the mother and child. Others though felt it did manage to avoid that trap, particularly as the rules made it quite clear that the future could not be changed by any visit to the past. There was an honest and melancholy depiction of dementia, which didn't sugar-coat the sadness.
The group also discussed the book's approach to gender, and there was a feeling this was most definitely a male perspective, with women expected to perform certain roles and behave in certain ways.
And although there was an appreciation for the themes raised by the novel, some felt there was a lack of depth, and that despite some poignancy, there was a slightness about some of the material that made it fall short of its potential. One member was puzzled by the absence of the cat that appeared on the cover, but perhaps that said more about him than the book.
Members found the book easily accessible, and felt there were some good ideas within it. The book's origins as a play were readily identifiable, and some members wondered whether it would have worked better on the stage, or perhaps even on screen (it had been made into a film in 2018).
Some members did find the writing a little clunky, though that could have been more to do with the translation than the original material. There was some repetition, and points were hammered home a little too regularly. Some felt the book laboured a little over the multiple rules that surrounded the time travel. There was though some enjoyment to be had in immersing the reader in a book that did feel distinctively Japanese in its approach.
Some members found the time travelling rules did keep the book focused though and ensured the author remained in control of the material. There was appreciation for the ideas and the thoughtful nature of the book. It did make you consider how you might use time travel to see someone you had lost, or try and recapture a moment.
There were some members who thought the book did lurch towards sentimentality at times, particularly in the final story about the mother and child. Others though felt it did manage to avoid that trap, particularly as the rules made it quite clear that the future could not be changed by any visit to the past. There was an honest and melancholy depiction of dementia, which didn't sugar-coat the sadness.
The group also discussed the book's approach to gender, and there was a feeling this was most definitely a male perspective, with women expected to perform certain roles and behave in certain ways.
And although there was an appreciation for the themes raised by the novel, some felt there was a lack of depth, and that despite some poignancy, there was a slightness about some of the material that made it fall short of its potential. One member was puzzled by the absence of the cat that appeared on the cover, but perhaps that said more about him than the book.
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