What do you think?
Rate this book
Sitting in My Box
With only his imagination for company, a little boy sits alone in a big cardboard box—and is soon joined by animal after animal, with hilarious results.
"Visually witty and rhythmically pleasing". —School Library Journal
"Visually witty and rhythmically pleasing". —School Library Journal
32 pages, Paperback
First published September 21, 1989
12 people are currently reading
180 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
February 12, 2021
My child loves this book. It is simple and funny. So many kids book try to put a movie into a 60 page book and they loose interest. Tis book is so nice because you can get through it, add voices, but its funny and quick. Thank you!!
August 29, 2022
**Warning: this text may contain spoilers**
This is probably one of the worst childrens books I've ever read.
This book goes to show that you don't have to be a good writer to write a children's book. 🙄
It's basically the same words over and over on every page. Not to mention (spoiler) a flea comes and chases all the animals out of this box but for some reason doesn't bother the kid? Fleas bother humans too...
Coincidentally, my daughter loves this book 😫
This is probably one of the worst childrens books I've ever read.
This book goes to show that you don't have to be a good writer to write a children's book. 🙄
It's basically the same words over and over on every page. Not to mention (spoiler) a flea comes and chases all the animals out of this box but for some reason doesn't bother the kid? Fleas bother humans too...
Coincidentally, my daughter loves this book 😫
February 27, 2014
"Sitting in My Box" is a great book for children. I really enjoyed the text and the illustrations. Jon Agee does a wonderful job depicting the characters. This short, colorful picture book starts with a boy who is sitting alone in a box reading a book about wild animals. You can only guess what happens next. The animals begin to appear one by one and ask if they can get in the box with him. But, as more and more enter, the boy has to stand. He then tells them that one of them has to go. They all refuse. Then, a flea comes along and joins them. After biting all the animals, they leave. The boy is left at the end alone again. I think this would be a great book to show children how books can enlarge their imaginations. And further, they don't have to end at what is in the book. They can take it to a new level. I would highly recommend this book. It would be a great read aloud for preschool through second grade.
July 1, 2013
Hit with the preschool storytime crowd. I used a big box as a prop which helped. Best part was when one of the kids asked if they could check it out, hugged it and promised to take good care of it. Awwwww.
November 26, 2013
I like the simplicity of the text for begining readers. The text is repeating, and predictable. The story is original, and has great illustrations. Could be used for visualizing.
November 2, 2014
Cute - BUT ?
The book was "cute" - but there is very little substance! Would be good for a short bed time story
The book was "cute" - but there is very little substance! Would be good for a short bed time story
November 18, 2014
Read this to my first graders and they loved it! Rather enjoyed it myself, too.
February 12, 2016
Very imaginative and fun!
June 22, 2020
Fun book about imagination and animals! Along the lines of The Mitten, a child is sitting in their box reading when several large animals decide to join him. What do you think happens?!
This would be a very fun book to turn into what I call a pop-out story. What I would like to do is to put down a mat, small blanket or wondermat square and sit on it, then I would ask the audience to imagine sitting in their own box and say along with me: “Sitting in my box a fill-in-the-blank knocks.” You can use whatever animal puppets or stuffed animals you’ve got on-hand for the fill-in-the-blanks, and then pretend a flea pays you all a visit.
I enjoy Jon Agee’s fun, bold illustrations and how the view toggles between inside and outside the box. He also manages to evoke the imagination of the child through imagery. It is so subtle, that I had to read the book a couple times before I noticed.
This would be a very fun book to turn into what I call a pop-out story. What I would like to do is to put down a mat, small blanket or wondermat square and sit on it, then I would ask the audience to imagine sitting in their own box and say along with me: “Sitting in my box a fill-in-the-blank knocks.” You can use whatever animal puppets or stuffed animals you’ve got on-hand for the fill-in-the-blanks, and then pretend a flea pays you all a visit.
I enjoy Jon Agee’s fun, bold illustrations and how the view toggles between inside and outside the box. He also manages to evoke the imagination of the child through imagery. It is so subtle, that I had to read the book a couple times before I noticed.
July 19, 2017
Fans of Jan Brett's The Mitten and other versions will enjoy this cumulative story, Sitting in My Box. A boy with a book, a tall giraffe, an old gray elephant, a big baboon, a grumpy lion, and a hippopotamus try to squeeze into one tiny cardboard box. When the box is filled to overflowing capacity, the boy announces someone has to go. Of course, no one volunteers until a flea shows up. Will the animals leave the box now? Repetitive lines and rhyming stanzas make this book a a good read aloud and one kids can reread to themselves over and over.
September 6, 2017
The storytime kids really enjoyed this: "They're not all going to fit!"
A boy is joined in his box by all sorts of wild animals, until a flea bites the animals and just leaves the boy, reading his book, in his box.
A boy is joined in his box by all sorts of wild animals, until a flea bites the animals and just leaves the boy, reading his book, in his box.
Read
August 8, 2019This is an oldie, but a goodie. It would make a good storytime choice for toddlers or preschoolers and it would be super fun to do it as a puppet story. You could have the puppets "jump" out of the box as the flea bites them. I wish I was still doing storytimes so I could try it out!
August 26, 2024
“I would feel mad if I had been in a box that was super tiny for a lot of animals and I would have to summon a flea to bite all the animals.”
(read aloud by himself at 4yo, missed one word, ‘hippopotamus’.)
(read aloud by himself at 4yo, missed one word, ‘hippopotamus’.)
May 3, 2018
This is a silly book about too many animals trying to fit in a box with a little boy. I love the illustrations. Great imagination of the author.
June 20, 2018
Good book for beginning readers. It is about a boy and his imaginative trip with a cardboard box. Students would love imagining they could meet all those animals while playing in a cardboard box.
November 12, 2018
this book is perfect for a multitude of ages
December 9, 2018
This story proves to the reader that there is nothing more imaginative and enjoyable than sitting in a box. Once you get in a box, you'll never know who will want to join you inside.
January 3, 2019
What happens when you can't say no? What happens when everyone says, "not me!"? Sounds like it's time for a FLEA to get the ball rolling to a happy solution. Very fun.
January 9, 2019
I read this book (in big book format) to a group of two-year olds and their caregivers. It is a simple book and worked well for this age group.
July 24, 2019
Good for beginning readers: imaginative with a few words per page. Would be a good companion title to The Mitten by Jan Brett or Not a Box by Antionette Portis.
March 10, 2020
A fun story about a little boy sitting in his box reading a book about wild animals and using his imagination. Good for reading aloud to a small group.
November 5, 2021
Another one to add to the "too many animals squeezing in a small space" genre.
October 24, 2023
For whatever reason, this was my favourite read aloud when I was teaching at Hwajong Poly and my kids have enjoyed it as well.
Read
November 22, 202311/22/23 PediaTrust story time - JC
11/22/23 Play and Learn story time - JC
11/22/23 Play and Learn story time - JC
July 17, 2024
This books was no longer in print at my library so I turned it into a felt story. It went over pretty well with the storytime crowd. Great for a "box" storytime.
October 6, 2014
This book is about a boy that has a box. He brings it with him outside then he sits in it. He also brings a book called "Wild Animals" with him. A giraffe comes over to the box and tells him to move over so that he can sit and he does. Then an Elephant comes and ask him to move over so he does. A baboon comes and does the same thing so they all move over. A little while later a lion comes over and ask the to let him in. They all move over so that the lion can fit in too. Then a hippopotamus comes out of the mud and ask to get in the box too. They all move over and he hops in the box too. The box is so crowded now that he has to stand so he ask them if someone would leave. They all say that they are not going to go and refuse to leave the box. Then a flea hopped in the box without even asking. He bit the hippopotamus and the lion so they jumped out. Then the flee bit the baboon and elephant so they jumped out too. Lastly the flea bit the giraffe causing it to jump out of the box then the flea left leaving the child alone in the box. Will the animals come back or will they leave the kid alone to enjoy his box by himself?
This is a book that tells the story with illustrations rather than words. Without the pictures this book would be very bland, but it is very entertaining with them. The child uses his imagination while reading to show the reader that they can do the same. It can also teach children a lesson which is that you should not go up to random animals because they could be dangerous. The child in this book is very innocent looking and the illustrations are nice. The animals are very detailed, but the child look a little bit creepy on some of the pages especially the last one. This book is very simple to read and I would recommend it to kids that are five and under. My favorite part of the story is when the flea came and got all of the animals to leave, but I am very curious about the boy not getting bitten. I guess it is because he was using his imagination and had control over what the flea did. I also liked how the environment changed as each animal came. For example when the hippopotamus came it hopped out of a swamp.
I was a little confused on why the kids had a box. The title page just shows him looking at it with his hand on his chin like he is observing a piece of art. On the next page it shows him walking with the box on his head which was kind of weird. I guess kids just do weird things when they are young. This reminds me of when I was a child because I would find anything and use my imagination to have fun. The title of the book is a little plain, but the artwork behind the letters makes it look interesting. The title just says Sitting In My Box in big bold black letters. I think they did that on purpose though because that sound very boring. Overall this was a great book for young children with great imaginations.
This is a book that tells the story with illustrations rather than words. Without the pictures this book would be very bland, but it is very entertaining with them. The child uses his imagination while reading to show the reader that they can do the same. It can also teach children a lesson which is that you should not go up to random animals because they could be dangerous. The child in this book is very innocent looking and the illustrations are nice. The animals are very detailed, but the child look a little bit creepy on some of the pages especially the last one. This book is very simple to read and I would recommend it to kids that are five and under. My favorite part of the story is when the flea came and got all of the animals to leave, but I am very curious about the boy not getting bitten. I guess it is because he was using his imagination and had control over what the flea did. I also liked how the environment changed as each animal came. For example when the hippopotamus came it hopped out of a swamp.
I was a little confused on why the kids had a box. The title page just shows him looking at it with his hand on his chin like he is observing a piece of art. On the next page it shows him walking with the box on his head which was kind of weird. I guess kids just do weird things when they are young. This reminds me of when I was a child because I would find anything and use my imagination to have fun. The title of the book is a little plain, but the artwork behind the letters makes it look interesting. The title just says Sitting In My Box in big bold black letters. I think they did that on purpose though because that sound very boring. Overall this was a great book for young children with great imaginations.
March 29, 2015
"Sitting In My Box" by Dee Lillegard is a story about a boy sitting in his cardboard box while reading his "Wild Animals" book. During the boy's time in his box, many animals come and visit periodically. The first animal to visit is a tall giraffe. The giraffe asks to be let in, so the boy happily agrees. After this, other animals come along and request to be let in as well. Some of the additional animals that join the boy in his box are an old elephant, a big baboon, a grumpy old lion, and a monstrous hippopotamus. Realizing how full the box is, the boy asks a few of the animals to go, but none of them agree. Eventually, a pesky flea enters the box and begins biting the animals. Once this happens, they all quickly exit the box leaving the boy to himself again.
In my opinion, I really enjoyed the illustrations and text in this story. The text directly relates to the illustrations, and the illustrations alone are enough to get the message of the story. In addition, I appreciate how the illustrations are cartoonish but realistic. More specifically, I thought it is neat how each animal wears a different facial expression and displays different body languages. For example, the giraffe wears a look of excitement and surprise whereas the grumpy old lion wears an unhappy and distasteful scowl. Also, I thought it was cool how the baboon conveyed his emotion through how he carried himself. More specifically, the baboon sits in a relaxed position with his arms crossed. Therefore, the facial expressions and nonverbal body language of the animals shows the readers of the story how much they can learn from observing people. At the same time though, this idea of nonverbal communication can influence readers to think about what nonverbal expressions they give off on a daily basis and how they are perceived by others around them. With this being said, the illustrations are very detailed and attractive, and this helps tremendously with keeping a reader's interest.
Additionally, in regards to the text, occasionally there are forms of repetition and rhyme in the story that adds to the entertainment. For example, the author uses “box” and “knocks” as rhyming words to make the text a more exciting read. Overall though, I recommend this story to children that have a special interest in animals. I believe all children would enjoy this book, but kids that are drawn to animals would have a larger interest than those who are not as interested. Personally, when I was growing up I really liked animals and had a strong interest in books like this. I thought it was so neat to look at and study the different animals from around the world. In closing, I recommend this story to beginning readers because it is a simple book that provides a great example for children on how to use their imaginations to develop creative stories that can occupy their interests for hours.
In my opinion, I really enjoyed the illustrations and text in this story. The text directly relates to the illustrations, and the illustrations alone are enough to get the message of the story. In addition, I appreciate how the illustrations are cartoonish but realistic. More specifically, I thought it is neat how each animal wears a different facial expression and displays different body languages. For example, the giraffe wears a look of excitement and surprise whereas the grumpy old lion wears an unhappy and distasteful scowl. Also, I thought it was cool how the baboon conveyed his emotion through how he carried himself. More specifically, the baboon sits in a relaxed position with his arms crossed. Therefore, the facial expressions and nonverbal body language of the animals shows the readers of the story how much they can learn from observing people. At the same time though, this idea of nonverbal communication can influence readers to think about what nonverbal expressions they give off on a daily basis and how they are perceived by others around them. With this being said, the illustrations are very detailed and attractive, and this helps tremendously with keeping a reader's interest.
Additionally, in regards to the text, occasionally there are forms of repetition and rhyme in the story that adds to the entertainment. For example, the author uses “box” and “knocks” as rhyming words to make the text a more exciting read. Overall though, I recommend this story to children that have a special interest in animals. I believe all children would enjoy this book, but kids that are drawn to animals would have a larger interest than those who are not as interested. Personally, when I was growing up I really liked animals and had a strong interest in books like this. I thought it was so neat to look at and study the different animals from around the world. In closing, I recommend this story to beginning readers because it is a simple book that provides a great example for children on how to use their imaginations to develop creative stories that can occupy their interests for hours.
September 19, 2015
First sentence: Sitting in my box. A tall giraffe knocks. "Let me, let me in" So I move over.
Premise/plot: A young boy is reading a book while sitting in a box when....a tall giraffe, an old gray elephant, a big baboon, a grumpy lion, and a hippopotamus intrude in a delightfully predictable way. They ALL want in HIS box, of course. But is there room for so many animals in such a small box?! What can he do?! What will he do?! Read for yourself and see in this imaginative book.
My thoughts: Enjoyed this one very much. Though I do wish it said, "Let me in, let me in!" instead of "let me, let me in." But other than that, this one is definitely delightful and just FUN for sharing aloud. (I loved the "not me, not me, not me, not me" page, for example).
For another picture book about boxes, try A Mighty Fine Time Machine by Suzanne Bloom. That one is also quite charming.
Premise/plot: A young boy is reading a book while sitting in a box when....a tall giraffe, an old gray elephant, a big baboon, a grumpy lion, and a hippopotamus intrude in a delightfully predictable way. They ALL want in HIS box, of course. But is there room for so many animals in such a small box?! What can he do?! What will he do?! Read for yourself and see in this imaginative book.
My thoughts: Enjoyed this one very much. Though I do wish it said, "Let me in, let me in!" instead of "let me, let me in." But other than that, this one is definitely delightful and just FUN for sharing aloud. (I loved the "not me, not me, not me, not me" page, for example).
For another picture book about boxes, try A Mighty Fine Time Machine by Suzanne Bloom. That one is also quite charming.
September 4, 2014
This is a fun story about imagination. A little box has a box and gets more and more company from wild animals until there's no room left. The narrative is very repetitive and has some rhymes, so it would appeal to younger children. The illustrations by Jon Agee are colorful and cartoonish and we loved the expressions on the animals' faces.
I thought there'd be more of an adventure with the little boy in his box, but I can appreciate how reading the book on wild animals in the box brought them to life. Overall, it's a short and fun book to read aloud and we enjoyed reading it together.
I thought there'd be more of an adventure with the little boy in his box, but I can appreciate how reading the book on wild animals in the box brought them to life. Overall, it's a short and fun book to read aloud and we enjoyed reading it together.
April 1, 2015
I'm a college student that will likely be a preschool teacher in the future, and one of my instructors has a fantastic collection of children's books, this being one of them. I think the reason I loved this book is because I could relate to the kid. One person wanted to join him so he said ok, then soon they just all sort of invited themselves in and wouldn't leave. He was finally left in peace to read his book alone when a flee bit all of them and made them jump out.
It's a book simple enough for toddlers, but I think it would also entertain older preschoolers.
It's a book simple enough for toddlers, but I think it would also entertain older preschoolers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews