Chapter 21 Summary, Analysis, and Key Takeaways
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
The chapter opens with the narrator in the shower, doing mental math about how many lawns he would need to mow to raise the $3,000 needed to bring Dad over from Hong Kong. He applies the eczema lotion Dad packed for him, feeling proud for remembering—one less thing for Mom to worry about.
He finds Mom asleep at the dining room table with her laptop open. He unplugs her charger to save energy and worries about the family's finances, wondering if they'll still be able to afford Uber Eats and frozen pizza. He notices Mom is on LinkedIn, a website she explains is for job hunting. She's applied to a few things but needs endorsements—recommendations from people who know her work. The narrator and Bowen offer to give her endorsements, but Mom explains they can't come from family members.
Mom announces they'll visit schools that day. The narrator is surprised—he thought they'd continue with online school. Mom says she's emailed their Hong Kong teachers to let them know they'll be starting regular school in America. The narrator gulps, realizing there may be no going back to their old school if he doesn't like the new one. Lea is excited, running off to change while singing.
On the way to the school, Dad FaceTimes from Hong Kong. He mentions that Cody's hair has grown so much he looks like a giant cotton ball, and that groomers are closed. He also mentions a toilet paper shortage at the grocery store. Mom says that would never happen in America, even with the virus.
They arrive at Davis Elementary School. The narrator has been there in summers to play with his sister but has never gone inside. The administrator welcomes them warmly, recognizing them as the family that just moved back from Asia.
Looking out the window, the narrator notices the other kids—white, Black, and Latinx—but no one who looks like him. He thinks about how Mom calls them mixed blood and Dad says they're like boba milk tea—the best of both cultures. He lists boba flavors in his head, remembering trips to Cha Long with Dad after soccer.
He asks about after-school soccer, hoping to make friends, but the school doesn't offer it. Mom asks about occupational therapists, but the school doesn't have one due to budget constraints. Then Mom mentions that the narrator has ADHD. The narrator is stunned—he thought he just had a blurting-things-out problem. He realizes his parents have been keeping this secret about him his whole life, and wonders if he would ever have known if they hadn't come to America.
Key Events
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The narrator calculates how many lawns he'd need to mow to raise $3,000 for Dad's travel
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Mom is found asleep at the dining table while job hunting on LinkedIn
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Mom announces the family will visit schools that day, ending online school
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Dad video-calls from Hong Kong, reporting toilet paper shortages and Cody's unkempt fur
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The family visits Davis Elementary School and is warmly welcomed
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The narrator notices no students who look like him
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The school has no after-school soccer program
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The school has no occupational therapist due to budget constraints
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Mom reveals the narrator has ADHD—news he never knew
Character Development
The narrator shows growing responsibility and maturity. He thinks about mowing lawns to help bring Dad home, remembers to use his eczema lotion to reduce Mom's worries, and unplugs the charger to save energy. His anxiety about the new school is palpable—he worries about fitting in, making friends, and whether he'll have a place to go back to if he doesn't like it. The revelation about his ADHD shakes his sense of self, making him question what else his parents might have kept from him.
Mom is proactive and determined. She's job hunting on LinkedIn, advocating for her children's needs at the school, and trying to keep things positive. Her decision to reveal the narrator's ADHD to the school administrator—without consulting him first—shows both her practical approach to getting support and a communication gap with her son.
Dad remains a supportive presence from afar, checking in via video call and encouraging the kids to take pictures. His reports from Hong Kong—the toilet paper shortage, closed groomers—highlight the escalating situation there and the family's separation.
Lea approaches the new school with excitement and confidence, signing her name to flyers and petitions in the office. Her enthusiasm contrasts sharply with the narrator's anxiety.
Bowen is helpful and playful, offering to give Mom endorsements in exchange for video game time, and helping clear the table.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
Financial strain and family sacrifice: The narrator's lawn-mowing math and his worry about Uber Eats and frozen pizza show how the family's financial situation weighs on even the youngest members.
Cultural identity and belonging: The narrator's observation that no one at Davis Elementary looks like him, and his reflection on being mixed blood or boba milk tea, captures his anxiety about fitting in as a mixed-race child in a new country.
ADHD and neurodiversity disclosure: The narrator's shock at learning he has ADHD—a condition he associated with more severe behaviors—reveals how a diagnosis can be internalized differently when it's kept secret. His parents' decision to withhold this information raises questions about protection versus transparency.
Resource scarcity in schools: The lack of after-school sports and occupational therapists due to budget constraints shows how underfunded schools struggle to meet students' needs, and how this affects families navigating new systems.
Family separation and connection: Dad's video calls, the toilet paper shortage in Hong Kong, and the narrator's wish that Dad were there all underscore the emotional cost of the family's separation.
Self-reliance: The narrator's instinct to solve problems himself—mowing lawns, saving energy—shows a child trying to carry adult burdens.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter marks a significant turning point in the narrator's journey. The family's transition from online school to in-person American school becomes real, and the narrator's fears about fitting in are made concrete when he sees no one who looks like him. The revelation about his ADHD is a major personal moment—it changes how he understands himself and his parents. The chapter also deepens the financial and emotional stakes of the family's situation, showing how the pandemic has upended their lives in ways both large (Dad's absence) and small (toilet paper shortages). The narrator's worry about whether he would ever have learned about his ADHD if they hadn't come to America raises a poignant question about what children don't know about themselves and why parents keep secrets.
Study Questions
1. Why does the narrator immediately think about mowing lawns when he considers the $3,000 needed for Dad's travel? What does this reveal about his character?
The narrator's instinct to find a way to earn money shows his sense of responsibility and his desire to help solve the family's problems. He's a child trying to carry adult burdens, and his acknowledgment that he doesn't even know how to mow lawns highlights both his determination and his limitations. This moment establishes the financial strain the family is under and the narrator's willingness to sacrifice his own time and energy for his father's return.
2. How does the narrator's reaction to learning he has ADHD differ from his mother's presentation of it? What does this reveal about family communication?
The narrator is stunned—he thought he just had a blurting-things-out problem and associates ADHD with more severe behaviors he's witnessed in others. His mother presents it matter-of-factly to the school administrator as a need for support, but she never discussed it with her son. This gap reveals that the parents made decisions about how to handle the narrator's diagnosis without including him, which shakes his trust and makes him wonder what else he doesn't know about himself.
3. What does the narrator's observation that no one at Davis Elementary looks like him reveal about his concerns regarding cultural identity?
The narrator's observation that the student body includes white, Black, and Latinx kids but no one who looks like him underscores his fear of being an outsider. His reflection on being called mixed blood by Mom and boba milk tea by Dad shows he's internalized both a sense of being different and a positive framing of that difference. But in the school office, that positive framing feels fragile—he worries whether the other kids will like him, and he wishes Dad were there to reassure him.