Front Desk (Front Desk #1)

Ten-year-old Mia Tang has a lot of secrets. Number 1: She doesn't live in a big house with a puppy, like she tells everyone at school including her new best friend. She lives in the Calivista Motel, where she manages the front desk while her immigrant parents clean the rooms.Number 2: To help their friends when they're down on their luck, her parents sometimes let them stay in the empty rooms...and if the mean motel owner Mr. Yao finds out, the Tangs will be fired and homeless. Number 3: More than anything, Mia wants to be a writer in English. But how can she succeed when even her mom thinks Chinese kids should be best at math?It will take all of Mia's pluck, kindness, and hard work to help her parents and friends at the motel, escape Mr. Yao, and share the truth about her life at last.