Days at the Torunka Café by Satoshi Yagisawa
Reviewer: Deb Alig, Circulation Assistant
Genre: Japanese Iyashikei (healing fiction)
Suggested Age: Teens and Adults
What is this book about? Days at the Torunka Café is a Japanese novel told through three interconnected short stories. The main setting is a quiet café located on a side street in Tokyo. The owner of the café, Isao Tachibana, is known for the delightful coffee that he brews. He plays a Chopin piano piece from overhead speakers which produces a calming effect throughout the cafe. There is a stained glass window in the café which also enhances the atmosphere. Tachibana’s teenage daughter, Shizuku, helps out at the café when she is off from school. Shuichi is a college aged part-time employee whose story is told first. To begin, Shuichi encounters a strange girl named Chinatsu who makes ballerinas out of napkins at the café. She has come in for a coffee and to tell Shuichi that though she does not know him presently, she knew him in a previous life which she fabricated to get his attention. However, her actual intent was to eventually tell him that they knew each other when they were children which is true. Chinatsu, hoping for love and companionship, does not know that Shuichi’s heart is broken from a previous breakup. But, the two spend Sundays together at the café, and eventually, new love becomes a possibility. The next story features a middle-aged man named Hiroyuki Numata who returns to the café in search of lost love and happiness. When Hiro was a young man, he loved a girl named Sanae. They spent lots of time enjoying coffee at the café. Regrettably, he broke up with her and now he wants to experience the happiness that he once felt when dating her. Hiro was able to do so because Sanae’s daughter, Ayako, was a regular customer at the café. Ayako and Hiro became friends, kind of like how a father is with a daughter. Eventually, Hiro decides to leave Tokyo, and he wishes Ayako a life filled with happiness. The last story is about Shizuku, the café owner’s daughter. Though she often appeared happy, she was actually suffering quietly inside. The sixth year anniversary of her elder sister’s death was approaching. One day while Shizuku was walking with Chinatsu, Shizuku unexpectedly encountered her sister’s former boyfriend, Ogino. This encounter caused Shizuku to start behaving strangely. She dressed in her dead sister’s clothes and declared her love for Ogino. Shizuku’s friends at the café became worried about her so they encouraged her to dress and behave like herself which she decided to do. She realized that she did not have to be like her sister to be appreciated and loved by others.
My Review: In preparing this review, I learned that the Japanese name for this type of fiction is Iyashikei. In Japanese it means healing fiction. In each story of this novel, healing takes place. Shuichi and Chinatsu discover the possibility of new love, Hiro rediscovers happiness, and Shizuku learns to love herself. I think that all of this healing comes about because of the café. It provides a sanctuary where there is a sense of safety, community, and belonging. While at the Tarunka Café, the characters engage in camaraderie , and they support one another thereby generating emotional healing.
Rating: 5/5
Three Words That Describe This Book: healing, cozy, community
Give This Book A Try If You Like: Before the Coffee Gets Cold series; What You Are Looking for is in the Library; Days at the Morisaki Bookshop
