A truly awful short story

その黄色の象は木に座りました。電話が鳴らしました。「申し申し。としょかんさん。明日に本を返したいます。」と言っだ。「この本が大好きだから、返ってこないです]。

象さは立ちました。「毎日この本を読みます。今が手にその本お持っていますよ。」と叫びました。泣き出しました。「お願いします。この本がとろう取らないでください。」


The yellow elephant sat on a tree. A phone rang. “I’m sorry. Toshokan-san. I want to return the book tomorrow.” “I love this book, so I won’t retur it.”

The elephant stood. “I read this book every day. I have it in my hand now,” he shouted. He started crying. “Please. Please do not take this book.”

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Now we need to know what happens next…

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The library made the phone call to the elephant and is asking for the book to be returned? Or the elephant called the library?

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この本はそんなに面白いの。つまらなくないの?

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I think 木に in this case is just “by the tree”, so the elephant was sitting somewhere around a tree, and then the library called and that should be something like “Hello? I’m from the library (toshokan-san → library person). Please return the book tomorrow”

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Wait, can you even conjugate たい like this? Is this from something?

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No idea, I’m still just at the start of learning!

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Thanks for the feedback!

They called the Elephant. It’s just a silly writing exercise to practice some verb conjugation and incorporate some kanji I already know (others were researched)

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We will never know if he gets to return the book :open_mouth:

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Ah, ok. No worries, then. :smiley::+1:

I was being a bit tongue-in-cheek there. :wink:

たい doesn’t conjugate like that. You can use something like 本を返したいです but that’s only if the speaker is the one that wants to return the book.

If you want to have someone else return the book to you it’s 本を返してください

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You said you’re still learning, so I won’t bother you with advanced stuff. This is pretty good, though I also didn’t understand what was going on, even in English. :sweat_smile: The elephant had the book, and wanted to return it tomorrow, but changed his mind and then started crying?

It should be と言った.
I’m sure you mean 象さん in the second paragraph.
本を持っています。
とろう取らないで?

:+1:

Maybe just something a bit advanced.
鳴らす is for ringing something yourself, like a bell.
鳴る is when something rings, like the phone.

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You can if you’re Anya.

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I would go with the literal sitting on the tree here, isn’t sitting under the tree commonly 木の下に?

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Or 木の側に座る to sit literally by a tree, but yeah, tbh, it’s a yellow elephant, so he’s probably also sitting on a tree, why not

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jackiechanconfused.jpg

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I was just checking so I could point out the mistakes. (For learning, I’m not trying to be critical.)

その黄色の象は木に座りました。-> probably you prefer to say “was sitting” rather than “sat.” If so it would be 座っていました。I’m assuming you meant on the tree itself like Dr Seuss’ elephants often do.

電話が鳴らしました。=> this is transitive form which means the “phone rang” (it would be like saying the phone ate, phones can’t be actors). Should be 鳴りました.

としょかんさん => never use an honorific such さん for oneself. Should be something like としょかんです。

明日に本を返したいます。=> This means “I want to return the book” but they want Elephant to return the book. There are many ways to say this but using kanji you’ve learned, you could say 本を返して下さい. Also don’t put に after 明日. No particles are needed for words like this.

と言っだ。=> 言った would be correct but you should stick with the -masu form. 言いました。

返って => 返して

今が手にその本お持っていますよ。=> omit the が after 今. You could say 今でも to mean “even now.” お should be を。

この本がとろう取らないでください。change が to を and drop the とろう.

Anyway it’s quite impressive for a new learner.

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The elephant is talking to としょかんさん, they never speak. At least I think that’s the case.

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No, the library called the elephant. I specifically confirmed that point before I posted my advice.

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I’d even go a step further and drop その本を entirely. It feels much more natural to me this way as Japanese doesn’t like to repeat information when unnecessary.

I would personally change the 返ってこないです into 返しません.

Just wanted to voice my agreement with this suggestion. Gives it some good emphasis.

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