There’s nothing quite like curling up with a good book on a winter day while sipping a steaming cup of tea. This week, we explore six comforting reads that revolve around food, cafes, books and cats in Japan – they’re perfect for the chilly days ahead.
The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa
This tender story is about a man’s journey around Japan with a wily street cat called Nana. On a road trip, Nana sits in the front seat of a silver fan with his beloved guardian, Satoru. Together, they travel around Japan, visiting Satoru’s old friends and meeting the warm-hearted couple Sugi and Chikako, who run a pet-friendly bed and breakfast hostel.
“My story will be over soon. But it’s not something to be sad about. Remembering those who went ahead. Remembering those who will follow after. And someday, we will meet all those people again, out beyond the horizon.”
The Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai
Tucked away on a quiet backstreet in Kyoto is a unique diner that serves food recreated from the treasured memories of customers. It is run by a father and daughter who consider themselves “food detectives”, investigating the lost flavours of their customers’ past. This heart-warming tale about food and memories is sure to make you hungry while devouring the book.
“I was experimenting with the seasoning of the vinegar, the cut of the mackerel, and how long to marinate it. The second one from the right ended up tasting best. Just because someone’s nostalgic about a certain dish doesn’t mean you can get away with some sub-par imitation.”
What You Are Looking For is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama
This book talks about the novel talent of a mysterious librarian in Tokyo, Sayuri Komachi: she has the ability to deeply understand her library guests. Each reader who visits her library would be treated to a book recommendation they never knew they needed because Komachi can sense exactly what they are looking for in life.
“You may say that it was the book, but it’s how you read a book that is most valuable, rather than any power it might have itself.”
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Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa
What can be better than a book that talks about the healing power of reading? This comforting read revolves around Morisaki Bookshop, a second-hand bookstore hidden in Tokyo’s Jimbocho suburb, which is known as the city’s hub for used books and publishing houses.
While the shop has been in Takako’s family for three generations, he has never been fond of reading. However, as Takako’s life begins to crumble, he finds solace within the stacks of books that fill the shop.
“I don’t think it really matters whether you know a lot about books or not. That said, I don’t know that much myself. But I think what matters far more with a book is how it affects you.”
“In those days, I really was like a butterfly waiting patiently to come out of its chrysalis. As I turned page after page, I was waiting for my chance to take flight.”
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
A cafe in Tokyo has been serving coffee for more than 100 years with a specific purpose: to help customers travel back in time. This poignant short read follows four visitors who use the cafe’s time-travelling offer to rectify one regret from their past. However, they must return to the present before their coffee gets cold.
“I was so absorbed in the things that I couldn’t change, I forgot the most important thing.”
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Before Your Memory Fades by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
Staying with Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s work, this is the third instalment of the original series Before the Coffee Gets Cold, where four new customers – a daughter, a comedian, a sister and a lover – each carry the weight of something they wish they had said differently.
“Things that you put off saying until tomorrow are sometimes never said.”
