Front Desk

I've had Front Desk by Kelly Yang on my to-read list for awhile, I think because I saw it won the Asian/Pacific American Award for Children's Literature. It is about 10-year-old Mia Tang, who helps her parents manage the Calivista Motel. Her family immigrated from China for a better life, but instead it has been a struggle to survive as they move from job to job. The motel may finally be their big break, and despite the owner and his unfair policies, Mia is determined to help her family succeed.

This was a great book. It took me awhile to get into it, especially because I struggle with books or movies where too many bad things are happening. I think it's just kind of too much for me to bear, so it's hard for me to push through. This book kind of felt like that at first, so I kept having to put it down--but then Mia made a friend at school, and I got to know the weeklies at the motel, and things started to be a little more bearable. :) The book also just made me chuckle about how Mia pretty much ran the front desk of the motel and convinced people to just accept it. I also loved how she used her writing to make a difference. (Vague but I don't want to give things away.) This turned out to be a feel-good book, and I loved reading at the end that the book is loosely based on the author's experience as a child helping her Chinese immigrant parents manage motels. This book reminded me what a struggle immigrants face and the need to show compassion and understanding.

Rating: * * (2/3 = Liked it)