Monday, November 13, 2023

Top Story (Front Desk #5) by Kelly Yang - ESSENTIAL

Top Story (Front Desk #5) by Kelly Yang, 304 pages. Scholastic, 2023. $19

Content: G

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Mia is excited to be in San Francisco’s Chinatown for journalism camp at the Chronicle. Even though it occupies her winter break, she is ready to go. Plus her best friend Lupe is attending her own mathematics camp across the bay at Berkeley and Mia’s mom is getting for her first major mathematics lecture - IN ENGLISH! The other kids at camp are older than Mia, and some of them are influencers, who seem to have more pull with the editors. If Mia and the other token diverse campers want to be heard, they are going to have to find a way to tell their stories on their own.

I love that along the way Mia learns even more about the history of Asians migrating to the US.  I liked that Yang wove these incidents (Angel Island, internment camps, racist laws) into the narrative without feeling intrusive. I feel this book in particular could stand alone, even if it is #5, and be used to spark many class discussions. Yang also gives each of her diverse characters room to bring in their own cultures.

Cindy Mitchell, Library Teacher, MLS


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