Before we say goodbye by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

📚 Book Description: Before We Say Goodbye

This 2023 novel is the fourth book in the internationally bestselling Before the Coffee Gets Cold series by Toshikazu Kawaguchi, translated from Japanese by Geoffrey Trousselot . It continues the poignant, magical realism storytelling that has captivated millions of readers worldwide .

Return to the Magical Café

The story returns to the familiar setting of Café Funiculi Funicula, the mysterious Tokyo coffee shop that offers its customers the chance to travel back in time . The same strict rules apply: visitors must sit in a specific chair, cannot leave the seat, can only meet people who have also visited the café, and most importantly, must return to the present before their coffee gets cold . As always, nothing they do in the past can change the present .

Four New Visitors Seeking Closure

The book introduces readers to four new individuals, each hoping to revisit one crucial moment in their lives :

Themes and Reception

Before We Say Goodbye explores universal human emotions: grief, regret, loss, redemption, and the search for closure . Since the past cannot be changed, each journey becomes about emotional healing—finding peace, saying goodbye properly, and cherishing the connections we have . Publishers Weekly describes it as "simple, sentimental, and profound," noting its "examination of love and regret in four acts, written in fluid, dreamlike prose" . The book continues the series' tradition of offering comfort and life lessons about kindness and communication