Before Your Memory Fades

Synopsis Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s touching Before Your Memory Fades, translated from Japanese by Geoffrey Trousselot, explores the age-old question: what would you do if you could travel back in time? More importantly, who would you want to meet, maybe for one last time?

On the hillside of Mount Hakodate in northern Japan, Cafe Donna Donna is fabled for its dazzling views of Hakodate port. But that’s not all. Like the charming Tokyo cafe Funiculi Funicula, Cafe Donna Donna offers its customers the extraordinary experience of travelling through time.

From the author of Before the Coffee Gets Cold and Tales from the Cafe comes another heartfelt story of lost souls hoping to take advantage of the cafe's time-travelling offer. Among some familiar faces, readers will also be introduced to:

The daughter who begrudges her deceased parents for leaving her orphaned
The comedian who aches for his beloved and their shared dreams
The younger sister whose grief has become all-consuming
The young man who realizes his love for his childhood friend too late . . .

Featuring Kawaguchi's signature wistful storytelling, Before Your Memory Fades is full of heart and emotion.

Catch up on the rest of the series with Before the Coffee Gets Cold, Tales from the Cafe and Before We Say Goodbye.


Toshikazu Kawaguchi was born in Osaka, Japan, in 1971. He formerly produced, directed and wrote for the theatrical group Sonic Snail. As a playwright, his works include COUPLE, Sunset Song, and Family Time. The novel Before the coffee gets cold is adapted from a 1110 Productions play by Kawaguchi, which won the 10th Suginami Drama Festival grand prize. It was followed by Tales from the cafe and Before your memory fades