しろくまカフェ 🐻‍❄️ Volume 4

Welcome to しろくまカフェ Volume 4! :bear:

bis version

:house: Home Thread

Note this club is based on the originally published series. If you have the bis version the content will be mostly the same but there are differences in page numbers and chapter titles



:clock1: Schedule :clock1:

Important Info
  • Make sure to use the half of the table that matches your version of the books! Left half for original, right half for bis!
  • *bis readers will have to do some jumping about as the chapters are in different orders
  • Original has some coloured pages at the beginning that are scattered in the different bis volumes, feel free to read them as you come across them in your different versions
Week Start Date Original Chapters Bis Chapters
Week 1 30 Dec 2024 1-3 61-63 (Vol 3)
Week 2 06 Jan 2025 4-6 64-66
Week 3 13 Jan 2025 7-9 67-69
Week 4 20 Jan 2025 10-12 70+71+73
Week 5 27 Jan 2025 13-15 74+75 (Vol 3) +79 (Vol 4)
Week 6 03 Feb 2025 16-18 80-82

Thanks to @Micki for providing the bis information



:question: Discussion Questions :question:

  1. What was your favourite joke each week?
  2. What is your favourite picture each week?

Spoiler Courtesy

Please follow these rules to avoid inadvertent ネタバレ. If you’re unsure whether something should have a spoiler tag, err on the side of using one.

  1. Any potential spoiler for the current week’s reading need only be covered by a spoiler tag. Predictions and conjecture made by somebody who has not read ahead still falls into this category.
  2. Any potential spoilers for external sources need to be covered by a spoiler tag and include a label (outside of the spoiler tag) of what might be spoiled. These include but are not limited to: other book club picks, other books, games, movies, anime, etc. I recommend also tagging the severity of the spoiler (for example, I may still look at minor spoilers for something that I don’t intend to read soon).
  3. Any information from later in the book than the current week’s reading (including trigger warnings that haven’t yet manifested) needs to be hidden by spoiler tags and labeled as coming from later sections.
Instructions for Spoiler Tags

Click the cog above the text box and use either the “Hide Details” or “Blur Spoiler” options. The text which says “This text will be hidden” should be replaced with what you are wishing to write. In the case of “Hide Details”, the section in the brackets that is labelled “Summary” can be replaced with whatever you like also (i.e, [details=”Chapter 1, Pg. 1”]).

Hide Details results in the dropdown box like below:

Example

This is an example of the “Hide Details” option.

The “Blur Spoiler” option will simply blur the text it surrounds.

This is an example of the “Blur Spoiler” option.

Posting Advice
  • Don’t be afraid to ask questions, someone else might be struggling with the same thing you are and its a great opportunity to help each other out!
  • Please mention the page number and book version (orig or bis) if you’re asking help on a specific section so people can find it easily (or week number)
  • You can search to see if someone has already asked your question!
  • Do join in with the conversation even just to share your thoughts on the current chapters.

Don’t forget to set this thread to Watching to get updates on the discussion!

5 Likes

Week 1

Original: Chapter 1-3
bis: Chapter 61-63 (Vol 3)

Participation

Will you be reading along with us this week?

  • I’m reading along
  • I have finished this part
  • I’m still reading the book but I haven’t reached this part yet
  • I’m reading this book after the club has finished
0 voters

If you’ve already read this book but are still going to join the discussion, please select “I have finished this part.”

3 Likes

Amazing how many manga characters take a trip to Okinawa (although sadly the Shirokuma cafe crew don’t end up going there in the end). I remembered the Chiura aquarium from another manga we read in beginner book club last year which was nice. Clearly a famous tourist spot.

When Panda says めんそ〜れ〜 this is apparently Okinawa dialect for “welcome”. Perhaps the equivalent of a picture of someone in Hawaii saying Aloha!

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it took me a bit to figure out they were yelling out tourist attractions or local words because I wasn’t familiar with them

What a nice set of chapters, that worked really well together for one week

I like all the awkward attempts the animals make to set up Handa and Sasako, especially the giant mango smoothie with the heart straw :sweat_smile:

I didn’t know polar bears actually have black skin!

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One of my favorite parts

When Handa asks Otter and Red Panda:

これシャカシャカしといて

And then in the background, they’re shaking it!


I learned that しといて is the ておく grammar point, and it says:

ておく is sometimes contracted to とく (or どく in verbs where would usually be said as ). Although this is not excessively common in conversation, it is very common in drama, manga, and similar media.

In the bis version there’s also a recipe for the シャカシャカバター。

Another favorite part

it’s nice to see Handa so happy! :star_struck:

I also learned about the N1(!) :astonished: grammar point めく

My least favorite part

Shirokuma and the kangaro (?) trying to setup a 祝福のキス (しゅくふくのキス)from Sasako, not cool without Sasako’s consent, imho. I imagine it’s supposed to be a fun, light-hearted joke, but it rubbed me the wrong way. :face_with_diagonal_mouth:

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Responding about Handa and Sasako

Ah, the heart shaped straw with the fireworks?! I think it’s funny too (if I’m understanding the story correctly) that they turned off the lights to make a dramatic presentation for the mango smoothie! :joy:

I read it as Handa had been to this store before (maybe with another girlfriend or something? I haven’t read book 2 or 3 yet, so maybe I’m missing something) because when they enter, Handa says (mutters):

前にもきたけど

:thinking: :person_shrugging: :sweat_smile:

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Oops typo, thanks! Corrected now

Handa and Sasako

He’s been there with Shirokuma asking him about Sasako. So basically a lot of the humour around Handa and Sasako centers on all the animals knowing Handa has a crush on Sasako but hasn’t asked her out yet

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Ah, okay that makes sense! :smiley:

I also thought it was funny that Handa thought Shirokuma let him win the cooking showdown, but it was really Otter and Red Panda that sabotaged Shirokuma! :astonished:

Yes, I thought so too! The basic outline of the story from what I gathered… Shirokuma wants to ask Sasako out for a date under the guise of an employee trip (maybe I’m reading too much into that part), but Panda wants to go too. Next chapter Handa asks out Sasako to go camping, but again Panda again wants to go. So they all end up going camping and to compete for Sasako’s heart, Shirokuma and Handa have a cook-off. Handa wins but there’s there’s the sabotage spin! What a story! :blush:

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week 1 reply

Here are some points where I had a different understanding- but not saying I’m right!

I thought the trip was because business was slow and it could be a tax write off? What have you the vibes that Shirokuma wanted to ask out Sasako? I might have missed something…

I understood this as, they were having a hard time agreeing to where the Shirokuma cafe trip should go, and Handa’s idea was to go camping. Red panda did some background maneuvering to get Handa on the trip

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Responding about week 1 chapters

It made sense in my head when I was reading it (because it sets up the cooking duel between Handa and Shirokuma)! :sweat_smile: But it sounds like I was connecting dots that shouldn’t have been connected! :blush:

Oh! I thought Red Panda was tipping off Shirokuma! :joy: Oh well, it’s definitely fun reading even if I’m not grasping the details correctly! :sweat_smile: :+1:

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lol, that’s ok, keep posting things like that and I’m sure someone will pipe up if it seems you misunderstood anything. It’s nice to read something just at the edge of comprehension like this, it will be really enjoyable if you reread it in a year as you’ll discover more nuance and see how far you’ve come in the meantime!

3 Likes

Week 2

Original: Chapter 4-6
bis: Chapter 64-66

Participation

Will you be reading along with us this week?

  • I’m reading along
  • I have finished this part
  • I’m still reading the book but I haven’t reached this part yet
  • I’m reading this book after the club has finished
0 voters

If you’ve already read this book but are still going to join the discussion, please select “I have finished this part.”

3 Likes

Week 3

Original: Chapter 7-9
bis: Chapter 67-69

Participation

Will you be reading along with us this week?

  • I’m reading along
  • I have finished this part
  • I’m still reading the book but I haven’t reached this part yet
  • I’m reading this book after the club has finished
0 voters

If you’ve already read this book but are still going to join the discussion, please select “I have finished this part.”

3 Likes

I’ve never read so much about coffee in my life

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Yeah, I am learning so much about coffee! I was actually given a coffee siphon for Christmas. Haven’t had a chance to use it yet but will be making some showy coffee for friends soon! With freshly ground beans obviously… :sweat_smile:

Chapter 67

So I had to look up Cocohana - turns out it’s the manga that Shirokuma Cafe comes from. Perhaps you all already knew that but I didn’t!

But on reading more I found that it is a josei manga - aimed at adult females! Maybe I should have realised when it was full of cute animals and sexy male florists. Luckily there is a new Dragon Ball SD coming out soon and I can get back to aliens and prolonged fight sequences…

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I think dragon ball should have more cute animals and sexy florists tbh

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Week 2 ch 4-6 / bis 64-66

I love these penguins, their enthusiasm to get that card game selling is fantastic :sweat_smile:

Did I mention coincidentally my aunt sent a calendar of penguins to me for Christmas?! I feel so smug recognising them :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

Week 3 ch 7-9 / bis 67-69

Thanks for the Cocohana heads up!!

All this coffee enthusiasm and knowledge is dangerous - I’ve been educating my SO and he’s looking into a mini roaster. The one he found looks almost exactly like the one kangaroo uses! It’s impressive how accurately drawn this manga is

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If you get that roaster you absolutely have to put googly eyes on it because it looks like a little horse

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And a tail :sweat_smile:

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Just had a mini heart attack because I thought there were only 3 weeks left in the club, but then realized the og version has 5 volumes :sweat_smile: Phew, I can still catch up!

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