Diane Hawley Nagatomo was born in the UK and lived in Nebraska, Spain, Massachusetts, New Mexico, and California before coming to Japan in 1979. She is a semi-retired professor from Ochanomizu University and has written extensively on issues concerning gender, culture, and education. While not teaching or writing, she and her Japanese husband of more than 40 years spend time with their six grandchildren. The Butterfly Café is her first work of fiction.

This book examines the professional identities of Japanese university English teachers. It focuses on how relatively new teachers develop their professional identities, how gender impacts the professional identities of female professors, and how teaching practices and beliefs reflect personal and professional identity.