after you read the summary for each chapter, what do you learn about mia ?
CHAPTERS 27-40 ANALYSIS
In this segment, the reader sees Mia taking charge of her circumstances. She is no longer a passive victim of the miseries of life. By taking steps to circumvent the problems hurled at her on a daily basis, Mia illustrates the third major theme of the novel: persistence overcomes resistance.
Initially, Mia seems further than ever from realizing her dream of winning the Vermont essay contest after she receives a C-minus on an essay. Her own self-doubt is amplified by her mother’s opinion that Mia will never write in English as well as a native speaker. Aside from the grammatical barriers that she needs to overcome, Mia also needs to raise the $300 contest entry fee. Anyone else facing such obstacles would probably quit, but Mia demonstrates enormous persistence. As she tells the reader, “But I had this thing where if I started something, I had to finish it. It didn’t matter what it was” (32).
Mia’s tenacity allows her to focus on creative solutions instead of obstacles. When a random guest leaves her a tip, Mia doesn’t simply pocket the money. She sees the tip as an opportunity to raise even more cash. At this point in the story, the tip jar makes its first appearance as a vessel that not only contains cash but acts as a receptacle for Mia’s fondest dreams.
The tip episode also affords Mia an opportunity to improve her writing skills. Armed with a dictionary and thesaurus, she composes a halting thank you note to the generous guest. Although she’s still haunted by her mother’s condemnation of her writing skills, Mia’s father offers a counterbalance when he buys her the shiny green pencil, encouraging her to keep writing. Because the pencil symbolizes Mia’s aspirations as a writer, when Jason steals it, he’s stealing her dream, just as her teacher and mother have tried to do. Mia finds a novel way to punish Jason’s thievery by coating his own pencils with burning salve.
CHAPTER 41 SUMMARY
At school, Mia learns that Lupe has forgiven her after reading Mia’s apology note. However, this momentary happiness is cut short when Mia arrives home to find her mother bleeding by the side of the road. Two thieves have robbed the motel and beaten Mrs. Tang. Hank has taken off in pursuit of the robbers. The Tangs rush to a nearby hospital. Although Mrs. Tang isn’t severely injured, the Emergency Room treatment costs $5,800. A hospital official says the family’s free lodging at the motel disqualifies them from low-income assistance even though their earnings fall below the poverty line. The doctor who treated Mrs. Tang argues with the administrator until he deletes the bill. The Tangs only need to pay a basic hospital fee of $150, which is everything Mia has collected in tips thus far. That night, Mia writes a thank you letter to the doctor for waiving their hospital bill. Just as she finishes, Hank arrives with some good news and some bad news.
CHAPTER 42 SUMMARY
Hank informs the Tangs that he was able to capture the two thieves. In the process, he got arrested himself for hitting one of the men with a rock. Now nobody will hire him, and Yao can legally evict him because he was away from the motel for one night while he was in jail. The family decides they need to do something to help Hank.
CHAPTER 43 SUMMARY
The Tangs make a plan to hide Hank by moving his belongings out of his old room and shifting him around to various spots in the hotel that Yao won’t check. Hank is grateful for the housing but tells Mia he’ll never find a job now that he has an arrest record. Getting a reference letter from his last employer is out of the question. Mia asks what she can do to help Hank find a job, but he says it’s complicated, and there are things she would never understand. Mia thinks, “As Hank looked into my eyes, I realized there were reference letters and mean girls. And then there were other things on a whole other level of ‘you don’t understand'” (187).
CHAPTER 44 SUMMARY
Once news gets around the neighborhood about the robbery at the motel, the security guard from the Topaz returns and says it would never have happened if they’d had a guard like him. Mia and Hank mock him, saying that he would only have gotten arrested. The guard retorts that an arrest is a badge of honor in his profession. He hands Mia his card and leaves. The card gives Hank an idea, and he decides to apply for work as a security guard himself. After writing several application letters, Hank gives them to Mia to post for him. Because one of the envelopes is still unsealed, Mia writes a letter of recommendation to include with Hank’s job application. Mia boldly states in her letter that Hank has been a security guard at the Calivista Motel and did a fantastic job. Then she crosses her fingers and mails Hank’s letters.
CHAPTER 45 SUMMARY
One day in autumn, Mia is surprised to see a young girl arrive at the motel. The Calivista doesn’t usually book parties of guests that include children. When Mia tries to be friendly, the girl brushes her off. The next day when she checks out with her mother, the girl leaves behind a pair of blue jeans. Mia’s mother says these might be a perfect fit and launders them for Mia. The next day, Mia goes to school wearing her first pair of American jeans. Everyone in class notices. She thinks, “I tried to play it cool, of course. I tried to walk normally, one foot in front of the other, but inside me, fireworks were going off” (195).
