Bakemonogatari, Part 2: Monster Tale
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- Create Date：2021-08-12 09:57:01
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：NisiOisiN
- ISBN：1942993897
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Summary
Bakemono， literally "altered thing，" which translates as "monster。" Monogatari， literally "thing narrated，" which translates as "tale。" Combined into a neologism by he of the reversible nom de plume， they yield BAKEMONOGATARI， the monster tale that kicked off a series whose anime adaptations have enjoyed international popularity and critical acclaim。
A self-described loser， Koyomi Araragi is struggling at a prep school that he should never have gotten into。 He has all but quit caring， but as a senior， he faces the chilling scenario of not being able to graduate。 It's time to cram， but the supernatural aberrations that keep on popping up in his provincial town won't let him be。
Previously， our hero turned into a vampire and back， gained an acid-tongued girlfriend， and couldn't find his way home thanks to a lost child。 In this second of three parts， which introduces Suruga Kanbaru and Nadeko Sengoku， he becomes embroiled in a case that riffs on a classic English story from 1902。
A self-described loser， Koyomi Araragi is struggling at a prep school that he should never have gotten into。 He has all but quit caring， but as a senior， he faces the chilling scenario of not being able to graduate。 It's time to cram， but the supernatural aberrations that keep on popping up in his provincial town won't let him be。
Previously， our hero turned into a vampire and back， gained an acid-tongued girlfriend， and couldn't find his way home thanks to a lost child。 In this second of three parts， which introduces Suruga Kanbaru and Nadeko Sengoku， he becomes embroiled in a case that riffs on a classic English story from 1902。
Reviews
Arlo Linnard
，
Just as good as part 1
Antonio Buscemi
，
Kanbaru is a great character。 Read this solely for Kanbaru。
João Cardoso
，
Once again this Light Novel was divided into 2 arcs。 Suruga Monkey was the most interesting， giving Suruga Kanbaru a very unpredictable and enjoyable characterization。 That aberration's backstory was also interesting and the climax was pretty good。 Nadeko Snake， on the other hand， felt weak in both characterization （except for Suruga Kanbaru） and aberration-wise。 While a symbolic aberration， the climax， exorcism， and backstory were unsatisfying。 And once again， there was unnecessary sexualizatio Once again this Light Novel was divided into 2 arcs。 Suruga Monkey was the most interesting， giving Suruga Kanbaru a very unpredictable and enjoyable characterization。 That aberration's backstory was also interesting and the climax was pretty good。 Nadeko Snake， on the other hand， felt weak in both characterization （except for Suruga Kanbaru） and aberration-wise。 While a symbolic aberration， the climax， exorcism， and backstory were unsatisfying。 And once again， there was unnecessary sexualization of a minor but not as blatant as in the previous volume。 。。。more
Nate Wynter
，
Good book， lots of foreshadowing and a nice moral pay off in the end。 The dialogue was witty and engaging， and you could clearly read the scenes。 It wasn't a perfect book since it's part of a larger series， but it was pretty amazing！ Good book， lots of foreshadowing and a nice moral pay off in the end。 The dialogue was witty and engaging， and you could clearly read the scenes。 It wasn't a perfect book since it's part of a larger series， but it was pretty amazing！ 。。。more
Chelsea Kelly
，
3/5 Stars: ‘Bakemonogatari: Part 2’ （Book #2 of ‘Monogatari’） by NisiOisiN。→ Age Range: Adult。→ Genre: Fantasy， Light Novel。→ Trigger Warnings: Nudity， Sexual Profanity， Self-Harm。In-depth Rating:→ Plot: ★★★→ Character Development: ★★★★→ Setting: ★★→ Entertainment Level: ★★★★→ Writing: ★★★General Comments: Similar to ‘Part 1’， environments and outside descriptions are mostly absent， unless they directly concern the characters in some way; you are unlikely to get lost in the setting。 Instead， the 3/5 Stars: ‘Bakemonogatari: Part 2’ （Book #2 of ‘Monogatari’） by NisiOisiN。→ Age Range: Adult。→ Genre: Fantasy， Light Novel。→ Trigger Warnings: Nudity， Sexual Profanity， Self-Harm。In-depth Rating:→ Plot: ★★★→ Character Development: ★★★★→ Setting: ★★→ Entertainment Level: ★★★★→ Writing: ★★★General Comments: Similar to ‘Part 1’， environments and outside descriptions are mostly absent， unless they directly concern the characters in some way; you are unlikely to get lost in the setting。 Instead， the focus is squarely on dialogue， banter， wordplay and tensions between the characters。 As convoluted as the chatter can be， the prose itself， the style of the narrative， is very straightforward and often simplistic。Favourite Quote: ‘It’s impossible for someone to replace someone else。 Just like it’s impossible for someone to become someone else。 No matter how much like them， no matter how much you adore them。’Time Read: Two Days。→ Audiobook: No。→ Audiobook Narrator: - 。。。more
Benjamin
，
A continuation of the tales of Araragi， if you liked the first part then there's more to be had here。 As with the first I enjoyed the back and forth quipping， the interesting dilemmas and the twists and turns the MC goes through while solving each abberation。 A continuation of the tales of Araragi， if you liked the first part then there's more to be had here。 As with the first I enjoyed the back and forth quipping， the interesting dilemmas and the twists and turns the MC goes through while solving each abberation。 。。。more
Doc
，
Be careful of what you wish for or it might consume you。Continuing this tale of abominations the main character Koyomi Araragi is adjusting to life as his new girlfriend does what she can so he is not a complete scholastic loser （outside of math which he is actually not bad at。） However something seems off as we are treated to the stories of Suruga Kanbaru and Nadeko Sengoku which build upon the original part of the story wonderfully without burdening the reader to have to read it to understand Be careful of what you wish for or it might consume you。Continuing this tale of abominations the main character Koyomi Araragi is adjusting to life as his new girlfriend does what she can so he is not a complete scholastic loser （outside of math which he is actually not bad at。） However something seems off as we are treated to the stories of Suruga Kanbaru and Nadeko Sengoku which build upon the original part of the story wonderfully without burdening the reader to have to read it to understand what is going on （though I still suggest you read it anyway。）Like part 1 of 3 this story is split into two stories with people who have come into the life of our quasi vampiric main character while his experiences with the supernatural world continue to affect those around him and himself as we are treated to a tale of wishes gone wrong and how sometimes affections can really crush when a curse takes on a life of its own。 Onward and upward to part 3 which if I am not mistaken has been hinted at in the first 2 parts。 Let's just hope things don't go to hell as we reach the finale。 。。。more
Duck
，
Dag 2
Daniel
，
The monkey arc is perfection
Bryn （Plus Others）
，
I really loved the anime of this despite its moments of weird problematic male gaze， and while for me the light novel suffers from its prose conventions， it still has a lot of things to love about it。 These chapters of the story aren't my favourite; Kanbaru's problems （view spoiler）[are interesting， and there is a good point in the fact that men don't have a lock on libido and sexual suggestion， but I just don't enjoy reading her interactions with Araragi。 What I did love about it was Araragi's I really loved the anime of this despite its moments of weird problematic male gaze， and while for me the light novel suffers from its prose conventions， it still has a lot of things to love about it。 These chapters of the story aren't my favourite; Kanbaru's problems （view spoiler）[are interesting， and there is a good point in the fact that men don't have a lock on libido and sexual suggestion， but I just don't enjoy reading her interactions with Araragi。 What I did love about it was Araragi's tendency to sacrifice himself even if that's not really the solution， and how what really saves Suruga is not Araragi 'defeating' her， or dying， but that Senjogahara shows up and tells everyone to quit playing the losing game and just behave like human beings who can relate to each other。 Yes， of course there is the trick of it， that the devil can't attack her without breaking its vow， so it has to give up， but the heart of it is in Senjogahara， and that is lovely。 （hide spoiler）]As for Sengoku， （view spoiler）[I remember the anime version of her story being much， much creepier than it was in writing -- but that might just be because I am conflating my memory of this original chapter about her with the later one in which she is absolutely terrifying in her self-obsession and willingness to harm others。 And the moment in the Sengoku story when Kanbaru reminds Araragi that sometime he might have to pick just one person to save， and that she hopes he'll pick Senjogahara -- that was a nice moment。 （hide spoiler）] 。。。more
Aiman Haris
，
even better and darker than part 1。
Theresa
，
I love Kanbaru！ I would have given this five stars， however， the second story NADEKO SENGOKU was not all that interesting。 Kanbaru being in the story is what made it good。
Alex Rozenstine
，
I still don't know my personal rating for the first novel due to conflicting feelings about it， but i have enjoyed the sequel so much more！ I especially enjoyed reading about Kanbaru， one of the new characters introduced in this book， who was very lively and countered Araragi's personality really well during their dialogues。 （which is a positive， because one of their witty combacks back-and-forth conversations lasted for about 50 pages）I wish the second arc in the book had more to offer and focu I still don't know my personal rating for the first novel due to conflicting feelings about it， but i have enjoyed the sequel so much more！ I especially enjoyed reading about Kanbaru， one of the new characters introduced in this book， who was very lively and countered Araragi's personality really well during their dialogues。 （which is a positive， because one of their witty combacks back-and-forth conversations lasted for about 50 pages）I wish the second arc in the book had more to offer and focused a bit more on the character it has introduced。 。。。more
Caleb Guice
，
On his second attempt， NisiOisiN pulls out all the stops and manages to craft an elegant two arcs that build on the first with a deeper narrative， intriguing mysteries， complex characters， and an intensity that wasn’t present in Hitagi Crab and Mayoi Snail。 While the focus is not on them， Hachikuji and Senjougahara provide a great source of comedy and intrigue， while newcomers Kanbaru and Nadeko prove to be fascinating characters in their own right。 Each character is built out with such uniquene On his second attempt， NisiOisiN pulls out all the stops and manages to craft an elegant two arcs that build on the first with a deeper narrative， intriguing mysteries， complex characters， and an intensity that wasn’t present in Hitagi Crab and Mayoi Snail。 While the focus is not on them， Hachikuji and Senjougahara provide a great source of comedy and intrigue， while newcomers Kanbaru and Nadeko prove to be fascinating characters in their own right。 Each character is built out with such uniqueness and excitement， each having distinctive relationships and dynamics with Araragi which each make for original conversations and comedy for every character。 In particular， Kanbaru is the only character whose perverseness exceeds Araragi’s， making him uncomfortable， which—if you can handle very sexually charged flirting and comedy—is absolutely hilarious。 I ended up liking Kanbaru more here than in the show。 Nadeko’s dynamic is different， as the innocent and oblivious character who has a hard time keeping up with Araragi’s mile-a-minute conversations。 It’s easy to classify Nadeko as having the weakest characterization， but， hey， you have to start somewhere， and it makes me excited and anxious for the directions her character take in Second Season。 And she’s a fun character in her own right regardless， even if her conversations don’t have the same entertaining back-and-forth energy as everyone else。NisiOisiN crafts two unique mysteries which build on themselves in fascinating ways and culminate in exciting climaxes。 I’m probably a bit more a fan of Nadeko Snake， although I give credit to Suruga Monkey for adding depth to my least favorite arc from season one of the show， even if the fight scene at the end couldn’t quite compare to the frantic and hyper-violent animation in the show。 Nadeko Snake presents a moment I didn’t feel got enough attention in the show with a lot more weight: （view spoiler）[ Araragi being unable to save everyone。 This is such an important turning point for his character， going from someone who selflessly helps everyone—a trait that makes Senjougahara at times think she’s ordinary， like Araragi would have saved her and anyone else， regardless of who they really are—and you see how this tension can build in a relationship。 But at the end of the arc， Araragi realizes there are times he can’t save everyone， and he does have to choose who he will help。 I feel this is such a defining moment for him to love the people he wants to save， instead of being driven by altruistic ideals to help everyone。 It’s a subtle difference， but it does wonders to his characterization。 （hide spoiler）]I also think it’s worth noting that NisiOisiN really does a much better job with his fanservice and ‘flirting’ this time around。 While Vol。 1 was full of sexually charged moments that translated well onto the screen with appropriately over-the-top sound effects and a comedic tone， but failed to illicit the same response on the page， Vol。 2 seems to have a better understanding of what feels like comedy and what doesn’t， and dials back what doesn’t。 One moment that I feel was still a bit of bad choice is （view spoiler）[ when Kanbaru tells Araragi to comment on Nadeko’s body， he does， and then she cries。 It’s uncomfortable and isn’t funny—although maybe it’s meant to be a growing moment for Araragi that he can’t say whatever he wants to some people like he says to others， and that not everyone will respond to his jokes in the same way。 He is still a high schooler， after all。 （hide spoiler）] Aside from this moment， however， I really think NisiOisiN has much better control of the moments which have turned so many off from the series。 Now I simply have to wait and see how he pulls off the toothbrush scene… 。。。more
Gigalovania
，
The first arc is REALLY good， the second arc is just okay。 Still fun。
Michael Campbell
，
There are few， if any， recent authors I've read as witty as NisiOisiN。 He's consistently hilarious and works the humor into the plot naturally and often。 He also plays at deep moral quandaries fairly well and is undeniably creative when it comes to unique plot concepts。 All of his characters have depth and development， and he enjoys taking standard archetypes and twisting them around to where they're barely recognizable。Long story short， he's brilliant。 This one is not one of his deeper novels， There are few， if any， recent authors I've read as witty as NisiOisiN。 He's consistently hilarious and works the humor into the plot naturally and often。 He also plays at deep moral quandaries fairly well and is undeniably creative when it comes to unique plot concepts。 All of his characters have depth and development， and he enjoys taking standard archetypes and twisting them around to where they're barely recognizable。Long story short， he's brilliant。 This one is not one of his deeper novels， but it's probably the funniest one so far。 Kanbaru is a delightful character and getting to know her is really the main focus of the novel。 We get a glimpse of Sengoku， but we have to wait a bit to really get to know her。I hope that these novels keep getting translated to English， because I hope to finish reading the series。 The anime is brilliant in it's own right， but it misses out on some things that can only really be done well in print。 。。。more
Juan
，
La Segunda parte de la Historia principal de Monogatari。Aquí te presentan a dos personajes más Kanbaru Suruga y Nadeko Sengoku， que al igual que la primera parte se encuentran con "Aberraciones" o Mounstros que cambiarón su vida。En mi parecer Sengoku es uno de mis personajes favoritos， pero la historia de Kanbaru me gusta mucho por la pequeña referencia a "La pata de mono"。 La primera lectura fue pesada para mí pero es porque no estaba acostumbrado a leer aún en inglés。 La Segunda parte de la Historia principal de Monogatari。Aquí te presentan a dos personajes más Kanbaru Suruga y Nadeko Sengoku， que al igual que la primera parte se encuentran con "Aberraciones" o Mounstros que cambiarón su vida。En mi parecer Sengoku es uno de mis personajes favoritos， pero la historia de Kanbaru me gusta mucho por la pequeña referencia a "La pata de mono"。 La primera lectura fue pesada para mí pero es porque no estaba acostumbrado a leer aún en inglés。 。。。more
Sean Newgent
，
Vertical presents two more tales of the Monogatari series by NisiOisiN in Bakemonogatari Part 2。 Despite being the same style of witty banter and fast-paced writing fans of the series will expect from the author， this duo of tales is a smidge weaker than those that came before。 Let me start with Vertical and Ko Ransom's issue which I have brought up in previous novels--these need a better editor。 The fact Suruga's name was misspelled at one point in the book is perhaps the worst faux pas an edit Vertical presents two more tales of the Monogatari series by NisiOisiN in Bakemonogatari Part 2。 Despite being the same style of witty banter and fast-paced writing fans of the series will expect from the author， this duo of tales is a smidge weaker than those that came before。 Let me start with Vertical and Ko Ransom's issue which I have brought up in previous novels--these need a better editor。 The fact Suruga's name was misspelled at one point in the book is perhaps the worst faux pas an editor can let pass。 I understand that light novel releases in America aren't given the fine-tooth comb approach because they are rather niche and don't afford a ton of editing--fans will buy it regardless--but I feel like all someone needs to do is read the book once to correct any offensive mistakes。 The rest of the issues can be attested to light novel style writing （discussed in my review of Part One）。 Suruga Monkey is a fine riff on the Monkey's Paw story but lacks the charming discussions of the Hachikuji and Senjogahara arcs。 Kanbaru is my favorite character in the series but it takes both of these tales to give her enough time to really display her full and rather eccentric character。 Her feelings toward Senjogahara are explored pretty decently and the ending has good emotion--in fact the story really deals with the idea of unrequited love in the context of same-sex romance quite well。 But I only wish Kanbaru had been given more time for witty conversations。 Her bits in Nadeko Snake are where she begins to finally gel in the overall "harem" of the story which I think is a little late。 But that's really small nitpicks compared to Nadeko Snake， which is the weakest story Monogatari has offered yet。 The only entertainment value it has is the interactions between Araragi and Kanbaru。 Everything else from the story of a snake curse to Nadeko herself is absolutely weak and pathetic。 Nadeko has a pretty bad rep among fans of the series and I am removed enough from the show lately that I can't remember how I felt about her。 And this story cements why I can't remember anything。。。she's entirely forgettable。 Which in a way plays into who she is as a character and maybe that was the author's intent。 But in a series that thrives on having really well-fleshed out characters Nadeko is super boring。 Nadeko Snake is this flatlined little adventure where I didn't even feel any sort of emotional connection--something that was always if not effective at least there in the other tales。 Here she's cursed because she turned down a guy， we find out about it through Araragi's discussion with Oshino rather than from her own mouth， and the majority of the expository dialogue， generally reserved for the girls to build emotion and connect you with them， is given to Araragi in an overlong chapter with Oshino。 It's all extremely amateur and surprisingly weak for as consistently excellent as Monogatari has been。 Bakemonogatari Part 2 has a great new character in Kanbaru， even if it takes a while for her to get interesting， and an entirely forgettable character in Nadeko。 It's not a bad book by any stretch of the imagination--I enjoyed reading it wholeheartedly。 Half the mature， interesting YA tale I expected but half is just a lot of nothing。 Hopefully there aren't any more stories quite as flat as Nadeko's。 。。。more
Andrew Dato
，
This is part two of my ongoing read of the series。 Being a huge fan of the anime I decided to sit down and read the source material and see what I like about it Now Bakemonogatari part two is the second part in what I consider the prologue or act one of the series。 The series is divided currently into 3 Seasons （4 for the untralsated ones） that make a fantastic story arc of Araragi Koyomi。 You can look at his works like three act structure。 Season 1 sets up a premise that might be generic， seaso This is part two of my ongoing read of the series。 Being a huge fan of the anime I decided to sit down and read the source material and see what I like about it Now Bakemonogatari part two is the second part in what I consider the prologue or act one of the series。 The series is divided currently into 3 Seasons （4 for the untralsated ones） that make a fantastic story arc of Araragi Koyomi。 You can look at his works like three act structure。 Season 1 sets up a premise that might be generic， season 2 subverts your expectations and actually deconstructs your original perception of the series， season 3 being conclusion the deconstruction with a little bit of reconstruction of the genre。 Bakemonogatari does the same thing with its stories。 Crab and snail from part 1 sets up Araragi as this force of good helping people with their problems。 Actually solving the issue and having a good ending。 Part two has two stories which we can label monkey and snake that completely subverts your expectations of what the story should be。Monkey and snake do a great job presenting the issues and flaws in Araragi’s character and how he can not always find a solution。 He wants to save everybody and has a bad case of risking his life to save everybody。 But sometimes that is not the solution， the solution is not to make everybody happy but to compromise and save who you can。 That is the beauty of these stories in this book。 They completely break down your perception of what this series is and shows you the flaws of this。As well it works to start trying to deconstruct the harem genre as well。 Araragi is in a committed relationship and Kanbaru is not a fawning junior trying to get his attention but someone who is a bigger pervert then he is and has feelings for someone else。 The relationship between these two characters in this book is a thing a beauty。 Their clever word play， the quips， the back and forth， and many more details work so well in building this friendship between them。 It’s not about whose going to win a harem but actually this great relationship of friends between the two of them that grows。Which the word play is on point in this book。 The back and forth between the characters is so well done and fun that it’s so much fun to read。 Again this is the star of the series， two characters having a conversation that has zero bearing on the plot but is just so much fun。My recommendation for this series always comes with the biggest but。 This series is majority dialogue that doesn’t go anywhere。 It’s about two characters having a clever back and forth and then eventually returning to the plot。 There is a lot of filler but it is fun filler and if you don’t mind it， this will be a very fun and rewarding experience to go through。 。。。more
Peter Marendeak
，
Pont olyan jó， mint az első kötet （milyen meglepő…）。 Továbbra is jelen van az anime stílus， a dialogue heavy jelleg és a pazar karakterek。 És örülök， hogy még rengeteg van hátra a sorozatból。 Bízom benne， hogy végig tartja majd a színvonalat。
damixyoohyeon
，
DNF。 I can´t stand the bad writing anymore。 If I continue with the story I think I will watch the anime。
Acacia Weber
，
This was a great read， the characters are fun and the supernatural stuff is really neat！
Rehero
，
I like it。
Benny Dinunzio
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Donne scimmia e donne serpente。La prima la eliminerei da quanto è rompiscatole， la seconda è adorabilmente timida patologica
Chris Orme
，
20/130 （2018 Reading Challenge）Another great instalment。 One of my favourite Anime series。 So it’s great getting a chance to read the books never thought they would get released over here！ NisiOisiN rules。
Howard
，
The dialog in the Monogatari is always entertaining and this book is no exception。 I burst into laughter several times while reading。 The conversations are always wild。
Robert
，
I liked this volume substantially more than the first part of Bakemonogatari， maybe because I this time really did get what Nisio Isin is trying to do with the story and its theme， rather than just seeing the good execution but not the real sense behind it， as was my case with the previous part。If you go into this book already knowing what awaits you prose & dialogue wise， I think this is a book that you can enjoy if you don't fight against it， accept it as an unusual way of telling a story and I liked this volume substantially more than the first part of Bakemonogatari， maybe because I this time really did get what Nisio Isin is trying to do with the story and its theme， rather than just seeing the good execution but not the real sense behind it， as was my case with the previous part。If you go into this book already knowing what awaits you prose & dialogue wise， I think this is a book that you can enjoy if you don't fight against it， accept it as an unusual way of telling a story and just stick with it。 Also， this is just a part of Bakemonogatari， so ending and conclusion of the whole novel have yet to be experienced by the reader， which makes it hard to rate this fragment of a story。 But I'd say that it works pretty well。 I am a lazy reader， I like things getting presented to me， and I don't really think that much about what is or was happening。 Thus， it really was helpful to get the second （or fourth in total） story about Sengoku， to contrast her from all the other cases and with that also highlight an important factor about all those cases: Every person did bring the aberration upon themselves。 This is not a story about a guy running around slaying monsters， this is a story about how things can go wrong if you try to go against fate and fight against things that you shouldn't fight to a certain extent。 "Try to shape your life but also try to accept the unchangeable" is what could be said to be the topic of the novel so far， in my opinion。 。。。more
Strider
，
Another great volume by NisiOisin。 We had two arcs again。 The first was about Kanbarou and I liked her much more here than in the series。 Her dialogues were pure gold in the whole book。 Both of the stories were well-constructed and their length was almost perfect too。 The other new character was Nadeko who will have quite a big part in the story later。 It was a really enjoyable add to the Monogatari series and it displayed the strongest parts of the author: great character dynamics and dialogues Another great volume by NisiOisin。 We had two arcs again。 The first was about Kanbarou and I liked her much more here than in the series。 Her dialogues were pure gold in the whole book。 Both of the stories were well-constructed and their length was almost perfect too。 The other new character was Nadeko who will have quite a big part in the story later。 It was a really enjoyable add to the Monogatari series and it displayed the strongest parts of the author: great character dynamics and dialogues。 。。。more
Mohammad Hassan
，
As someone who came tot his series after watching Bakemonogatari， Nisemonogatari and Nekomonogatari， I have to admit， reading this volume felt EXACTLY like watching the anime。 The dialogue， the banter was so spot on。 Amazing series。 Currently halfway through Part 3。
Stuartandbooks
，