My partner recommended Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s most popular book a few weeks ago, and I just recently finished it.
Even though I ended up adoring it, I need to tell you a few things about Before the Coffee Gets Cold age rating and the content inside before I can recommend the book.
Based on the content inside, the book is appropriate to read for 18-year-olds and over.
A few themes of the book you should be aware of include death, grief, chronic illness, pregnancy, and car accident.
In terms of language, the book uses simple and easy sentences to understand.
About the Book
I will describe Before the Coffee Gets Cold as a short story collection. There are four chapters inside the book, and each focuses on different characters and problems.
However, there is a thread that connects all of them, which is Funicili Funicula – a cafe that is famous for its ability to send a person to the past.
In every chapter, we follow a different character that goes back to the past for whatever reason they have.
This book is the first installment of the four-book series so far.
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Before the Coffee Gets Cold Trigger Warnings
If you need further details about the triggering contents inside the book, I’ve got you!
Death, grief
In one of the chapters, a person goes back to meet someone who has recently died.
Naturally, the book explores their grief and how they process their feeling after being left behind by their close one.
The story also has a scene where the character is going to the funeral. They explain how the funeral goes, including the situation and the atmosphere.
Dementia, chronic illness
Another chapter of the book focuses on a different problem. In chapter two, we follow someone who goes back to the past to meet someone they loved before they got dementia.
The story tells us how the characters feel to be forgotten by someone they love, while they always have to be there for them.
This chapter or story is actually my favorite of them all. I was in awe of witnessing someone take care of their loved one, who is now a dementia patient.
I think that was the most significant act of love out of all that the author tried to showcase in this book.
Car accident
The book does not describe the car accident in great detail.
However, it is being mentioned a couple of times, including the chronology and the accident’s impact on the victim.
Pregnancy
It’s pretty tricky to talk about this one without too much spoiler. Basically, the last person who sat in the chair, alias the time machine, was a pregnant woman.
Unfortunately, the doctor suspects that the birth process will not go smoothly because one of them will not make it.
This chapter almost made me bawl my eyes out. There’s a clever spin in the story, which made it stand out compared to the previous ones.
Wrapping Up
If you are suitable for the Before the Coffee Gets Cold age rating, I feel safe now to recommend the book to you after we discuss all of the triggering content you will find inside.
Honestly, I’m glad I read the book. The story and the characters made me feel warm – it felt like I was inside the cafe with them when I was reading the book.
If you decide to pick up the book, please tell me in the comment below if you get a similar vibe as I felt.
