“Oh gosh, is that the time?”
I think we all sometimes want to have access to a time machine. We’d like to go back and explore older times, or have one more day with those we’ve lost, or maybe skip ahead a few years and see if things really do get better. It’s a bleak time at the moment on planet Earth, so escapism is key to staying sane during the next couple of months, whether we’re quarantined or not. (Note to readers from the future: This post is being written during the rise of the coronavirus crisis, with Italy and Spain already entirely locked down.) When looking for something charming to read, there are worse places to escape to than Japan.
The small cafe of Funiculi Funicula in Japan has been beset by rumours for years. The urban legend goes that it is possible to travel in time in the cafe, although people say that you can’t change anything in the present by doing so, meaning that the legend eventually recedes as no one can see what the point of going back in time is if things will only stay the same. Nevertheless, Kei, Nagare and Kazu continue to run the cafe for the clientele who want to visit. Once in a blue moon, someone decides to see if the rumours are true, and will often be surprised when they are.
The story follows four people who use the cafe to travel in time. There’s the woman who wants to confront her ex-boyfriend, the woman who wants to get a letter her husband never sent, someone trying to connect with her sister one final time, and the fourth who just wants to spend some time with her daughter. Each gets their wish, but they are held to account by the rules. You can only travel by using one particular chair in the cafe. You may not leave this chair while in the past. And the most important rule of all: the time limit. You only have until your coffee gets cold…
I’m still a relative newcomer to Japanese literature, but from what I’ve learnt so far, they have an impressive skill of creating stories that are equal parts beautiful and weird. The writing is charming and somewhat melodic in places, heavily reliant on repetition which builds up a sense of tradition and protocol that whatever is happening is somehow sacred. Everything is done in a very specific way, and while the owners of the cafe take no responsibility regarding what happens when you’re travelling, sometimes they do have a contingency plan in place to make sure you don’t get stuck in the past.
It’s a small cast of characters and just a single, beautifully described location, but everyone feels real and struggling with their own tragedies and anxieties. Like other magic realism from Japan, such as If Cats Disappeared From The World, you don’t question the oddness and instead just accept that, of course, this is part of the reality. None of it feels frivolous or silly and you become emotionally invested in the stories of these people. The key theme, though, is that we shouldn’t be living in the past and moving on is healthy. Don’t forget the times and people who came before, but do not dwell on things you cannot change or always wondering “What if?”
Well worth the hype. Forgo your lattes for a few days and buy this instead.
Did you know that as well as reviewing everything I read, I also write novels, too? My books blend black humour with light horror, crossing genres with ordinary characters dealing with extraordinary circumstances. Head over to wherever you buy books to take a look at my two offerings. The first, The Atomic Blood-stained Bus, introduces you to a cannibal, an ex-god and the last witches of Britain, while the second, The Third Wheel, follows a man who is tired of being single while all his friends get married, but has a change of priority when aliens invade the planet. I hope you enjoy!