Matcha on Monday

 

Matcha on Monday / Michiko Aoyama
trans. from the Japanese by E. Madison Shimoda
NY: Hanover Square Press, 2026, c2021.
208 p.

My final review for WIT Month this year is Matcha on Monday, the second volume of the Marble Cafe series. I loved this book. I found it stronger and more resonant than the first, which I also enjoyed. But this one focused in a little more intently and so the storyline was tighter, and it also made the concept from the first novel -- that we are all connected -- even more explicit and emotionally moving. 

The Marble Cafe is a tiny shop is a quiet part of Tokyo that has a regular clientele. Except for on Mondays, when it's closed. But one Monday, a young woman is having a day full of bad luck and decides to treat herself, forgetting it's Monday. When she gets there she discovers that there is a little pop-up matcha cafe going on, and decides to go in and check it out. She is strangely intrigued by the non-communicative tea expert, the son of a tea wholesaler family from Kyoto who is testing out their teas in Tokyo. Luckily for her, he will be managing the new shop opening in Tokyo soon. 

This book also follows characters into the next story, once they appear in one they are likely to show up in the next one. We meet a lingerie designer/shop owner (loved her story), a befuddled husband who has angered his wife, a theatre artist who has a difficult relationship with her grandmother, and a singer going through a breakup. And The Master reappears in this one too. While the first book had its stories organized by colour, this one moves through a calendar year, as well as moving between Tokyo and Kyoto. 

I really enjoyed the thoughtful conversations that the characters had. Everyone is so civilized somehow, even while going through emotional ups and downs. I loved reading about the garment designer, the tea expert, Kyoto, puppets and more. So much in this one but I was especially struck by the Master's explanation of how we never know the connections that led to our meeting another person - because someone far back in the chain set something in motion, we can meet today, and we'll never know where it started -- and equally, how what we do today will affect those around us down the line. The smallest gesture or action may have a huge effect on someone's lives, and we'll never know it. It was a touching story, and I found the gentle connections between characters appealing and comforting. A new fave.