Key Player

The Front Desk series is a collection of middle grade novels by Kelly Yang that follow 10-year-old Chinese American Mia Tang as she manages the front desk of the motel where her parents work after emigrating to Anaheim, California, during the 1990s. In the first novel, the Tangs take a job working for Mr. Yao in the Calivista Motel because the job comes with free lodging. Mr. Yao turns out to be a terrible boss, making frequent deductions from their wages and criticizing everything they do. Mia decides to enter an essay competition in hopes of helping her parents rise out of poverty and buy a motel of their own. She works hard on her writing skills but doesn’t win the contest. However, she successfully spreads the word that the Tangs need help buying the motel from Mr. Yao and they raise the money together from many investors.

In the second novel, Three Keys, Mia faces new challenges managing the motel and answering to all the investors while trying to develop her writing at school. A new immigration proposition is looming that could seriously impact her best friend Lupe’s family. Mia learns to use her voice and her writing to support fellow immigrants and help her friend.

In the third novel, Room to Dream, the Tangs have finally saved up for a vacation to China to visit their friends and family. The motel struggles when new megahotels and chains move into the neighborhood. Mia feels conflicted about her relationship with Jason after he kisses her without her consent, but they work to repair their friendship. Mia gets her writing published in a newspaper in China and begins to develop a real readership. As the fourth installment of the series, Key Player, opens, Mia and her family hope to buy their own house. Mia feels more established in her writing, and her friendships with Jason and Lupe continue to be strong.