Front desk by Kelly Yang
Walker Books Australia, 2018. ISBN 9781760650469
(Age: Young adult - Adult) Recommended. Front desk is
inspired by Kelly Yang's personal experience immigrating from China
to America, and her journey of running motels with her parents from
when she was eight to twelve years old. Many of the events that
transpire in Front desk actually happened in Yang's life. The
story follows ten-year-old Mia Tang who after moving to America with
her mother and father has to help out in running a motel, all while
overcoming the issues of language barriers, discrimination, and
finding courage and confidence to make a difference for herself and
her family.
This was a well-written and easy to read novel that really focused
on Mia's journey growing up, and facing and overcoming tough issues
for a ten-year-old. And while Kelly Yang did not shy away from
expressing the harsh truths of discrimination, she balanced it out
with heartwarming moments that made the story flow smoothly. While
the themes explored are heavy ones she addressed them in a way that
made you really think about them. I myself sat down after reading
this book wanting to know more about what it was like for immigrants
coming to America from China in the 80's and 90's. Kelly also wrote
about Mia's character in a way that made her attitude seem older
than that of a ten-year-old, especially considering the issues she
went through in this story. Lastly, I found that Kelly's use of
metaphors throughout the story to be very clever as Mia seemed to
use them as motivators throughout her journey.
I would recommend this to young adults and adults as the themes
explored in this story are important but also not too heavy.
Kayla Raphael