SuitabookFront Desk
Kelly Yang
- Reading
- Read alongside a child who may want to pause around the violence, racial language or immigration-related fear. Afterwards, compare Mia’s choices with the adults’ responsibilities and explore whose perspectives are most visible.
- Themes
- Mia’s agency and responsibility: Mia manages the motel front desk, wants to become a writer and tries to help immigrants and guests while facing pressure from adults. The narrative presents Mia’s courage, kindness and hard work as important strengths, while also showing that she needs support from family and friends.
- Racism, immigration and economic inequality: The family and motel community encounter racism, poverty, unfair wages, poor working conditions, limited health insurance and immigration-related fear. The book frames racist and exploitative treatment as injustice, while centring the experiences and efforts of immigrant and minority characters.
- Worth knowing
- Some episodes may merit preparation: characters are beaten up, a drunk man grabs Mia’s shirt, a former guest threatens her, and bullying and racial insults occur. The book also includes fraud, loan sharks, poverty and references to an ICE raid.