Adachi doesn't remember when it started but, during nighttime, he transforms into a shapeless monster. On a particular night, while wandering alone on a deserted beach he remembers the homework he forgot at school and decides to go grab them.
Since it was almost midnight he aspected no one to be there so he got scared when he heard someone entering the class. The girl appearing in front of him is no other than the class' outcast, Yano Satsuki.
The young girl not only gave no sign of fear, but she also recognized him right away!
Adachi takes some time to realize the singularity of the situation: why and what is Yano doing in school, so late at night?
Amazing as it sounds, Yano asks Adachi to come again the next evening and soon it becomes their regular appointment. But daytime and nighttime are completely opposite: during classes in the daytime, Adachi will ignore Yano and will keep neutral to all the bullying and wickedness she has to endure from her classmates, while during nighttime he tries to understand her way of thinking and of dealing with reality.
Up until a day when some of their classmates plan to sneak inside the school to catch the kaiju (monster) that's rumored to be wandering around, putting Yano's safety in danger...
❝ There's no limit to the evil that can grow within someone
once they have the excuse. ❠
👍👎My Thoughts
This novel really hits differently and that's because of the complete numbness and indifference over social injustices that affect Adachi and nearly 2/3 of his classmates.
And the other 1/3, you ask? Those are the perpetrators of Yano's bullying for the only reason that she acts her own way and doesn't want to change just to fit in with everybody else.
Yano may strike as a weird young girl but, besides her being a stuttered, she's actually kind. After Adachi gets to know her a bit more deeply during their encounters at night, he'll realize that she's not as clueless as she seems.
From the review above you thought the main topic of the story is about bullying and, while that's not completely false, the main focus is on the indifferent people: classmates who see Yano being mistreated on a daily basis and turn the other way around, only because they don't want to shake the status quo.
By his own admittance, Adachi is one of them; he's not proud of that and it's not like he's one of the 'cool kids' or tries to be one: he's the quiet and nerdy kind of young boy and he simply thinks leaving things the way they are is the easier way to live.
I was left bothered and a bit disturbed by the bullying Yano had to go throught but, as I kept on reading, I also understood how two completely different things like Adachi transforming in the monster mentioned in the title and bullying were actually connect...I appreciated the metaphor, a lot!
The important message is clear since the very first pages: to end injustices, one must speak up and even be ready to face the consequences. You might never know, many people may feel the same way as you are...
Related MOVIES about bullism
⚫ Elephant (2004) USA
⚫ Mean Girls (2014) USA
⚫ Dolcissime (2019) Italy
⚫ Better Days (2019) China
Ph: goodreads.com
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