The Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki trans. by Jesse Kirkwood

This is a fun, thought provoking, cozy, magical realism story set in modern Kyoto Japan.

The Full Moon Coffee Shop only pops-up during a full moon and only for those who need its services. Two things sets it apart: the staff are human sized cats and skilled astrologers who  know the star charts of the patrons; and the patrons don’t order but given what will best appeal to them.

Throughout the story, troubled characters, connected to each other in some way, find their individual ways to the coffee shop. These people have lost their way and don’t know what will make them happy. With good food and drink and guidance the cats help them find their path.

Okay, right away, I’m a cat person and any story with cats is a better story. The cats have fun well developed personalities and engage in amusing banter among themselves. As a reader, I enjoyed the cats and want to see more of them.

If you have read The Rainfall Market, you’ll see the similarities. Besides featuring cats, they both show people looking for what will make them happy. I was a bit concerned that a story with talking astrologer cats would be too twee for me but it isn’t. The theme is thoughtful and heartfelt and resonated with me such that I talked about both books with my therapist. There is something in the stories that everyone will be able to relate to. In fact, the messages you can glean from both books are more succinct and relatable than what I’ve found in self-help books. So, yeah, the book talked to me personally and that’s a testament to the skill of the author and translator for both books.

The Rainfall Market by You Yeong-Gwang

Serin is a Korean school girl who desperately wants a ticket to enter the mysterious market that is only open during the rainy season. She wants to escape the soul crushing poverty she and her mother suffer. People write to the market describing their unhappiness with their life and if deemed worthy, receive a ticket. Sarin receives a golden ticket allowing her to observe multiple possible lives before choosing one.The market (bigger on the inside) is inhabited by a community of Dokkaebi (Korean goblins) who will sell a ticket holder a globe containing a possible life.. Accompanied by a spirit guide cat, Issha, Sarin attempts to find the life that will make her happy.

“The author set out to write a light, fun read that was still packed with meaning…that left readers with a lingering sense of warmth”. She succeeds. Sarin is a sensitive, empathetic girl but she also has a kid’s naivety when it comes to thinking what would make her happy. The world within the market is fun to explore and the Dokkaebi are eccentric and amusing . The story is very good and has humor and some peril. The message isn’t heavy handed and is pretty clear: what you think you want may not be what you need; and maybe happiness is closer to home than you think. And it does leave you with a warm feeling that lingers.

The book can be read both by adults and young persons. I know I would have loved it in middle school. There are some scenes that would have had me howling and had me sniggering today.. The Dokkaebi make their goods from things they harvest from humans such as the essence of human words, forgotten human memories, the sweat and tears humans shed in pursuit of their goals. and this is part of the message: look at all the things that make us humans. It can be read and enjoyed as a cozy fantasy but it will also appeal if you're down or wondering about your life and how it could have been different.

I wish I had a kid to read it with. Maybe that’s what would be in my globe.