Room to Dream by Kelly Yang is the third book in her award-winning Front Desk series. The book follows 12-year-old Mia as she travels back to China for the first time since leaving for the United States four years ago. The book tackles important issues such as gentrification, racism, sexism, and xenophobia. It takes place in the 1990s, in Anaheim, California, and Beijing, China, and highlights some of the significant changes that took place in both locations during this time period. Room to Dream was originally published in 2021, preceded by Front Desk and Three Keys.

The edition used for this guide is the Scholastic 2021 edition.

Content Warning: This guide describes and discusses the novel’s treatment of racism and gentrification.

Plot Summary

Twelve-year-old Mia Tang is thrilled to be visiting China again for six weeks over the winter holidays. To prepare, she visits each of her teachers and collects homework assignments from them that she’ll complete while in China. Her English teacher, Ms. Swann, gives her a special assignment. Ms. Swann hands Mia a blank notebook and tells her to write about her experiences there, so she can read it when Mia returns. Mia, who dreams of being a writer one day, accepts the notebook gleefully. She hopes that by chronicling her stay in China, she will gain recognition in class for her writing skills.

Mia lives in a motel called the Calivista with her parents. Since two other independently owned motels, the Topaz and the Lagoon, closed for renovations, the Calivista is the only remaining place to stay on the block, leaving the motel busy. Mia’s dad arrives with Mrs. Davis, who helps him clean the rooms. Mia gives him the good news, and Mia’s mom arrives with another exciting announcement: She passed her substitute teaching exam, which puts her one step closer to fulfilling her dream of being a teacher in the United States.

That night, as they prepare for dinner, Mia gets a letter from The Los Angeles Gazette. She races to her room, only to find a rejection letter: her 79th. No one knew that she was trying to get published again after her piece about Proposition 187 was published in Los Angeles Times. When she hears a knock on her door to come eat, she puts the letter in her closet and heads to the table.

At dinner, friends and family celebrate Mia’s mom’s achievement. Soon, the conversation turns to gentrification. All over Anaheim, locally owned businesses are turning into chains or corporations. AS the group expresses their concerns, a news story on the TV catches their attention. The news anchor is covering the OJ Simpson trial, the outcome of which has increased racial tensions in the country. Hank is tired of it all. Mia chimes in and agrees, recalling an incident earlier that day when she, Jason, and Lupe, all people of color, were made to stand hidden in the back for the class photograph. This infuriates the group, and Hank announces he wishes he could escape it all for a while. At that, Mia’s dad offers to let him join their trip to China, and after some convincing, Hank agrees.

A few days later, before Mia and her best friends, Lupe and Jason, meet to see a movie and have dinner, Lupe calls saying she’s sick. Mia is sad at Lupe’s absence, because it’s her first time seeing a movie in the United States, but she loves the experience and is excited to go to her favorite congee restaurant after. When they arrive, the restaurant has been taken over by an upscale Chinese chain. Jason, who is taking extracurricular culinary classes, is impressed and announces that he hopes to open such a chain himself. Mia is less enthused and misses the old shop. At the end of dinner, Jason gives Mia a Christmas present: a gold key necklace. As Mia puts it on, Jason leans over and kisses her on the lips without asking. Mia is stunned. She takes the necklace off and sets it on the table before walking away, leaving Jason alone at the restaurant.

In China, the Tangs are greeted by aunts and cousins. Mia is most excited to see Shen, who is like an older brother. The two were close before Mia moved abroad, but they fell out of touch. Now, Shen attends a prestigious school, and his weekends are filled with tutors. However, he tells Mia that he does not fit in at school and is often bullied. Mia is determined to help if she can.

Mia’s Aunt Juli wants the family to work together to buy Lao Lao and Lao Ye, Mia’s maternal grandparents, a new apartment. Mia’s mom, who is intimidated by her sister, insists that they can help, even though the family is much less financially stable than their relatives in China. Mia is confused by her mother’s commitment, but it later becomes apparent that her parents are embarrassed about their financial situation. After seeing how prosperous some people are in China now, they begin to have doubts about moving to the United States after all.

Two older family members ensure that Mia’s trip is not all worries and warnings: her grandparents. Lao Ye, on learning that Mia is trying to get published again, connects her with the editor of The China Kids Gazette, a publication aimed at younger readers who are learning English as their second language. Mia is nervous about getting rejected again, but the editor loves what she’s written about her travels to China so far and wants to make her an official columnist. Mia soon begins to write to about 400,000 readers.

Meanwhile, Hank sets up a pop-up burger shop at a locally owned business, paying them some of the proceeds for rent so they don’t have to close. Mia also reconnects with Popsicle Grandpa, an old friend who encourages her to cherish her ability to learn, after the right was taken away from his own daughter during the Cultural Revolution in China. Each connection, new and old, forms memories that Mia carries with her when she returns to Anaheim.

Mia, her parents, and Hank are shocked to find that a giant motel, the Magna, has replaced the Topaz and the Lagoon. Now, the Calivista is in jeopardy, raising the question of whether or not to sell to the business, too. Meanwhile, Mia wrestles with how to approach Jason, since they haven’t communicated since the kiss, and with what to do about Lupe, who no longer works at the front desk with Mia due to her ardent study schedule. With no one else to turn to, Mia consults her readers, oversharing personal parts of her life. In a moment of frustration, she writes about Lupe not spending time with her anymore, and her fans write back that Mia should dump Lupe as a friend. On finding the fan letters and articles, Lupe feels betrayed.

Mia’s parents aren’t faring well on their return either: Mia’s mom is teased in school for her accent in English, and Mia’s dad feels increasingly embarrassed for being a professional cleaner. Meanwhile, the pressure mounts as to whether the family should sell their shares to the Calivista while they can. Mia goes to The Anaheim Times office, where she sets a plan in motion with the editor in chief. She will report both the Calivista and the Magna to the health department to see which one is cleaner. She is confident that the Calivista will win, since Mrs. Davis temporarily worked for the Magna and reported several unsanitary habits they used to save money. The plan works, and the Magna is exposed all over the news.

By the conclusion, Mia is published in The Anaheim Times, her reporting much less biased than in the China Kids Gazette. She makes up with Lupe, who was deeply stressed about school, and with Jason, who was facing discrimination in his culinary school. Her dad, who had considered returning to China to earn more money to send home, decides to stay in Anaheim, and Mia’s mom progresses in her teaching career. Hank opens a burger restaurant at the Calivista, which remains an independent motel after the health department scandal removes any threat. With perseverance, Mia and her family’s dreams may indeed be possible.