Key Player

What role do friendships play in Mia’s personal growth in this installment of the Front Desk series? How do her relationships with Lupe, Jason, and Hank evolve over the course of the novel?

What does the book suggest about the concept of success—both in sports and in life? How do different characters define and pursue success? Cite specific examples from the text to support your argument.

How is gender representation explored through the lens of the Women’s World Cup? How does Mia’s reporting challenge or reflect common perceptions of women in sports?

How does the motif of “dream houses” serve as a metaphor in the novel? What does “home” mean to different characters?

How does Yang use humor and Mia’s inner thoughts to make serious topics more accessible to young readers?

Discuss the novel’s exploration of fatherhood. Compare and contrast Mr. Yao and Mr. Tang’s approach to fatherhood and the way these approaches impact their children.

How does the novel engage with systemic racism? Discuss the impact of systemic racism on characters in the novel and the way characters demonstrate Resilience in the Face of Adversity.

Why does Yang choose to write the novel from Mia’s first-person POV? How would the novel differ if it were written from another character’s perspective?