Excuse Me, I'm Trying to Read!

by Mary Jo Amani, Lehla Eldridge (Illustrator)

When a young girl tries to read surrounded by elephants, lions, monkeys and zebras, she is surprised, scared, and amused. When the animals want to read, the tables are turned. A fun-filled picture book that will earn giggles and laughs from children of all ages.

Genres: Picture Books, Africa, Animals, Childrens, Books About Books, Humor

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Anne Lutomia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny book about a little African girl and various animals, birds, and insects interrupting each other as they try to read.

Was excited to note that the authors were inspired by women and children from Nwadjahane, Mozambique.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

Might be useful for developing a sense of urgency during Daily 5

[Lauren Greenberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Children's Literature - Lauren Abbey Greenberg
All a young girl wants to do is read in peace. But how can she when the animals of the African wild won't leave her alone? An elephant sprays, a zebra teases, and a dung beetle leaves her with a stinky present. She politely but firmly asks the animals to behave; she's "trying to read!" Repetitive phrasings on each page are good practice for emerging readers. The cadence is a bit clunky at first, but becomes more palatable as the story builds. In the end, the exhausted girl falls asleep in the tall grass. When she wakes, the tables are turned and now the animals want some peace and quiet; they are "trying to read!" Eldridge's illustrations are a soft and pleasing mix of watercolors and line drawings. Children will want to turn the page to see which mischievous animal will appear next. This picture book would make a good addition to a classroom library.

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excuse me, I'm trying to read! I feel like I say this as much as the character in this story does. My son had fun reading this story about a girl who is trying to read, but all her jungle friends are making it very hard for her to read her book.

[Nichole · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cute book about a girl trying to read with different animals: a lion, a snake, an elephant, etc and what problems she would encounter in doing so.

[Karla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute
Kids loved it
short and sweet
great message
interesting animals
expands vocabulary
A+

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super cute. A girl is trying to read (this book, Excuse Me, I'm Trying to Read...with each illustration showing her holding the book open to a different page of the book... super fun addition!) but African animals keep disturbing her...from the dung beetle rolling its dung across her book to the African Ibis that perches on her head, its sharp claws in her hair, to the crocodile who is about to swallow her. There is a fun resolution at the end. The illustrations are a big part of what makes this book fun.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I girl is trying to read her book (Excuse Me, I'm Trying to Read in fact) and keeps getting disturbed by all kinds of animals. It is hard to read in a crocodile's mouth or with a snake wrapped around you. I like the fun descriptions of the animals and the cheekiness in having the book act as the book. There was only one animal I didn't get...why the zebra was laughing; it doesn't seem like a zebra characteristic like all the others.

[Alexandria · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really cute book on the concept of not interrupting while someone is reading, as well as a good introduction to the idea of meta-commentary, Excuse Me, I'm Trying to Read! was a hit with the boys I babysit. The loved the animals and the various ways they went about interrupting the narrator. All in all, an enjoyable if not spectacularly noteworthy book.

[Manor Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book to our third graders. We loved learning about different animals from Africa and trying to guess what they would do to stop the girl from reading. We are going to take this book a step farther and research animals and create our own class book of Excuse Me, I'm Trying to Read! (3rd grade style of course!)

[Susanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

My nephew Sammy (5) LOVES this book. We checked it out from the library, and he asked to read it every night. It's short and funny with great illustrations. He wants to buy a copy so he can have it to keep.

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

When a young girl tries to read surrounded by elephants, lions, monkeys, and zebras, she is surprised, scared, and amused. When the animals want to read, the tables are turned.

[Paula Hollohan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Use this to imagine wonderful scenes and maybe to model some writing. Great for brain stretching!

[Theresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excuse Me, I'm Trying to Read!
Amani, Mary Jo
a silly story of African animals disturbing her reading... this little girl uses polite language

[Sarah Threlkeld · Rating 3 out of 5]

Could be used in the classroom/library to practice making inferences - have students think of their own scenarios with reading and animals and then illustrate.