Yang, K. (2018). Front Desk. Arthur K. Levine Books.
Summary
None of Mia Tang's friends know she lives in a motel. They also don't know she runs the front desk while her parents clean the rooms. The motel owner doesn't know that her parents hide immigrants in the vacant rooms. Mia wants to be a writer, but her mom thinks she should stick to math because numbers are easier than English. In this semi-autobiographical book of 'unknowns,' Yang shows that Mia is both kind and compassionate while learning to navigate her own uncertainties.
A Teacher's Perspective
This is the first book in a series that should be in every middle grade library. I truly enjoy the perspective, and the fact that Mia is such a great character throughout. I think students need to experience books like these--it teaches empathy. Until you're in that situation, you really don't know what it's like. At least by reading this, they could get a bit of perspective. I highly recommend this for all ELA classrooms and middle grade libraries.
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Author Kelly Yang introduces her autobiographical book in this video:
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