Three Keys - Kelly Yang

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Mia Tang thinks she's going to have the best year ever. She and her parents are the proud owners of the Calivista Motel, Mia gets to run the front desk with her best friend, Lupe, and she's finally getting somewhere with her writing. But as it turns out, sixth grade is no picnic...

1. Mia's new teacher doesn't think her writing is all that great. And her entire class finds out she lives and works in a motel

2. The motel is struggling, and Mia has to answer to the Calivista's many, many worried investors.

3. A new immigration law is looming and if it passes, it will threaten everything -- and everyone -- in Mia's life.

It's a roller coaster of challenges, and Mia needs all of her determination to hang on tight. But if anyone can find the key to getting through turbulent times, it's Mia Tang."

This is the sequel to Front Desk, which I read and reviewed two years ago (and thought was excellent), and as it transpires, book two in the series is equally as good. It follows Mia and her best friend, Lupe, as they navigate sixth grade and deal with the fallout of a new proposition being voted on in November - one that would ban undocumented immigrants from going to school and accessing medical services. 

Lupe and her parents are undocumented, so while this looming proposition frightens every immigrant, that fear holds extra weight for families like Lupe's. The girls don't let the hate and discrimination emboldened by the proposition cow them, though. Instead, it makes them even more determined to make their voices heard and do what they can to create a better world.

This book was an emotional read, especially after I read the author's note and learned that Kelly Yang wrote it after Tr*mp became president. The proposition in the book was a real one, and while my heart soars to know that there are people, kids and adults alike, like Mia and Lupe, courageously doing everything they can to make the world around them a better place, it also breaks thinking about the lack of progress we as a country have made in the thirty years since then. 

People, especially kids, shouldn't have to be in a position where they are worrying about their families being deported or not being allowed to go to school. Kids like Mia and Lupe shouldn't have to be writing their senators and begging them to do the right thing. It's infuriating that we live in a world where hatred like this is so normalized and acceptable that bills like this pass and some people don't even bat an eye - in fact, they cheer and say "good job!" It's maddening.

Maybe I should have given myself a few days before I wrote this review, since it isn't really a review, it's more of a rant about how much people suck. People may be horrible, but this book is not. Kelly Yang is an excellent writer, this is an excellent book, and I can't wait to add it to my school's library so my students can check it out next year.