Before the coffee gets cold, don't forget to come back to the present.

Before the coffee gets cold, by Toshikazu Kawaguchi, features four interwoven stories set in the retro coffee shop "Funiculi Funicula" in Japan. Known to be the subject of urban legend, this is the "coffee shop that takes you back in time."

I found the rules of time travel interesting as they were woven into the concept of the coffee shop:

#1. The only people you can meet are those who have visited the coffee shop.
#2. There is nothing you can do in the past that will change the present.
#3. It is only possible to time travel when you are sitting in a certain seat in the café
#4. As long as you are in the past, you must stay in the seat and never move from it.
#5. You must return to the present before the coffee gets cold.

This book only has 4 stories, but I found them interesting in their own way. In order of preference I will rank them like this:

The Sisters

Hirai had her future written by her parents, taking over the family inn. Being a free spirit, she left home, moving to Tokyo and buying a snack bar near Funiculi Funicula. For this reason, her younger sister Kumi had to manage the inn, frequently going to Tokyo to see her, but being avoided at all costs. Unfortunately, Kumi has died in a car accident after her last attempt to see Hirai, and the latter goes back in time to talk to her sister, regretting what happened.

Husband and Wife

Kohtake and her husband Fusagi are a long-term married couple who regularly frequent Funiculi Funicula. A few years ago, Fusagi was diagnosed with Alzheimer's and now does not recognize his wife. Concerned about this, Fusagi has written a letter asking Kohtake that if he ever forgets who she is, she should stay with him as his wife, not as his nurse. He now carries it with him knowing that someday his wife would visit him from the future.

Mother and Child

Kei, a waitress at Funiculi Funicula, is married to the cafe's owner, Nagare. Now Kei is pregnant, and the doctor says it is unlikely that both she and the baby can survive. However, Kei decides to go ahead with the pregnancy. Thinking of time travel in the cafe, Kei decides to try to travel to the future, in an attempt to meet her child.

The Lovers

Fumiko and her longtime boyfriend, Goro, meet at Funiculi Funicula. Fumiko thinks Goro is going to propose to her, instead he tells her that he has accepted a job in New York and has to leave immediately. Fumiko refuses to listen to Goro's explanation and tells him to leave. A few days later she regrets her reaction, going back in time to tell Goro that she does not want him to leave.

I liked the concept of the ghost who always sat reading in the time travel seat. I felt nostalgic reading her story.

That said, I think I found this book to be a compilation of selfless women, willing to put a man above all else. Each of the main characters are women, traveling back in time to fix problems they didn't cause or because they feel guilty for the actions of others.

In short, it was an enjoyable book to read, but when analyzed it is somewhat sexist.

CW: death of a loved one, terminal illness, chronic illness, and complications with pregnancy.