Room to Dream: Chapters 10–23

by Kelly Yang
In this third book of the Front Desk series, seventh-grader Mia Tang and her parents return from a vacation to discover that they are in danger of losing the Calivista Motel.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–9, Chapters 10–23, Chapters 24–38, Chapters 39–58
35 words 30 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. purge
    rid of impurities
    “Who were the Red Guards?” I asked.
    Popsicle Grandpa slowly explained that they were a group of students who went around the country trying to purge the Four Olds.
    “Old ideas, old culture, old customs, and old habits,” he said, setting down his cup.
  2. enrapture
    hold spellbound
    Popsicle Grandpa listened, enraptured.
  3. ail
    cause physical suffering to and make sick or indisposed
    He looked down at his ailing lower body.
  4. prance
    move or step in a lively, spirited, or showy way
    At the mention of dance exercise, my cousins immediately got up and started prancing around.
  5. static
    crackling or hissing noise caused by electrical interference
    “It just stopped working,” they said, pointing to the TV. They pounded on it and shook it, but nothing they did changed the snowy static on the screen.
  6. complexion
    texture and appearance of the skin of the face
    Lao Lao pushed aside the plastic flaps to the restaurant and said, “Now you’re about to have the BEST silk tofu in town. Nothing keeps your complexion looking young like tofu!”
  7. communal
    for or by a group rather than individuals
    It was a small place, with one long communal table surrounded by wooden stools.
  8. rave
    praise enthusiastically
    “You’d be surprised. The creamy peanut butter goes well with the silk tofu. You’re going to love it,” Lao Lao raved.
  9. delicate
    exquisitely fine and subtle and pleasing
    I put the spoon to my mouth and slurped up the delicate tofu.
  10. dredge up
    bring to mind something unpleasant from the past
    “Well, I think this Popsicle Grandpa is being a little melodramatic, don’t you think? Dredging up old history,” Aunt Juli muttered, wiping her hands on a napkin.
  11. decline
    refuse to accept
    While we waited, a secretary offered us tea, which my grandfather eagerly accepted and I politely declined. I was too jumpy to eat or drink anything.
  12. accessible
    capable of being read with comprehension
    “I like it. It’s very simple and accessible,” he continued, echoing the very adjectives the American editors had used in the rejection letters.
  13. miser
    a stingy hoarder of money and possessions
    But of course the owner, Jason’s dad, turned out to be a real miser.
  14. rivet
    hold someone's attention
    Mr. Wang was riveted, as was my grandfather, who remarked, “Wow! Your parents never told us all that!”
  15. proverb
    a condensed but memorable saying embodying an important fact
    Lao Ye shook his head and told me a Confucius proverb. “‘A good teacher can open the door, but you must enter by yourself.’”
    I tilted my head and replied with a proverb of my own. “Or as my best friend, Lupe, says, ‘You can’t win if you don’t play!’”
  16. commission
    place an order for
    He commissioned five columns from me on the spot, with the specific request that I keep them personal, just like in my first column.
  17. stub
    strike accidentally against an object
    It feels horrible, like when you stub your toe and your toenail falls off.
  18. mortified
    made to feel uncomfortable because of shame or wounded pride
    As I read back my essay, I wondered for a brief second what Jason would say if he knew I was writing about him. He’d probably be mortified.
  19. orient
    determine one's position with reference to another point
    For a second, I felt like I was back in California. I looked around, trying to orient myself.
  20. queasy
    causing or fraught with or showing anxiety
    Dad’s face crumbled like a thousand crushed saltines as we followed Mr. Chen up the marble steps. I felt queasy too, looking around the fake Jason house, thinking about what I’d just written about the real Jason.
  21. prompt
    urge, encourage, or motivate someone to act
    “Mia, say hello to Auntie,” Mom prompted.
  22. complimentary
    costing nothing
    He turned to my dad and said, “I must repay you for the complimentary burgers.”
  23. discretion
    knowing how to avoid embarrassment or distress
    “No, she was just exaggerating.... You know how kids are,” Dad said quickly. “Active imagination!”
    “And no discretion,” my mom muttered in my ear.
  24. curt
    brief and to the point
    “No thanks,” he said curtly, turning away.
  25. conversion
    act of exchanging one type of money or security for another
    “And after subtracting all our expenses, our cut was about ten thousand yuan.”
    My jaw dropped—it sounded like a lot of money!—but Mom shook her head. “With the conversion rate, it’s not enough for Lao Lao and Lao Ye’s apartment,” she said.
  26. console
    give moral or emotional strength to
    On the flight back, my mom and I were a mess of tears. Dad and Hank tried to console us—Dad offered me his extra packet of butter and Hank handed me all his Polaroids—but as I looked through the pictures, I felt an ache in my heart so sharp, it hurt to sigh.
  27. descent
    a movement downward
    Thirteen hours later, the pilot’s voice came through the intercom and told us, “Ladies and gentlemen, we are approaching our descent into Los Angeles International Airport.”
  28. sprawling
    spreading out in different directions
    I put my journal away in my bag and looked out the window at the sprawling Los Angeles Basin, feeling a flutter of excitement.
  29. lament
    regret strongly
    “We didn’t have the money to get that fixed,” Mrs. Garcia lamented.
  30. colossal
    so great in size or force or extent as to elicit awe
    Opening the back door, I stood in the colossal shadow cast on me, feeling the full impact of the chill of the Magna—and everything else.
  31. rehash
    discuss again; go back over
    “What’s wrong?” Jason asked.
    The thought of rehashing what had happened was so embarrassing, I turned bright red.
  32. culinary
    of or relating to or used in cooking
    “You’re looking at one of the finest junior chefs in the Newport Beach Culinary Academy!”
  33. genuinely
    in accordance with truth or fact or reality
    “That’s great!” I said, genuinely proud of him.
  34. embellish
    add details to
    “So embellish a little!” And with that, he ordered five more columns from me and hung up.
  35. ebb
    the outward flow of the tide
    “Give it time, little one. Remember that friendship is kind of like a river—there are ebbs and flows. Just because you’re in an ebb doesn’t mean the whole river’s dried up.”
Created on Mon Dec 12 10:50:09 EST 2022 (updated Thu Feb 09 15:04:20 EST 2023)

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