What Lily discovers though is that she and Kath have more in common than math. She and Lily hit it off, much to Shirley’s annoyance. Kath, who is Italian American, dreams of becoming a pilot. Her dreams revolve around rockets and space travel, making her a bit of an oddball at their high school until she meets Kath, a fellow math/science nerd, in their advanced math class. Lily excels at math and science, enjoys science fiction and plans to attend college. Lily is quiet and reserved, and she is an excellent student. She is determined to win the Miss Chinatown crown and maybe use it as a ticket to get out of Chinatown. Shirley is an extrovert who enjoys dressing up, going out, dating and getting attention. As the girls enter their final year of high school, their friendship is put to the test. On one hand it can feel like a safe and protective community, but on the other, it can feel stifling and inhibiting. Chinatown is a close knit community where it seems that everyone knows everyone else and knows their business, too. Lily and her best friend Shirley are Chinese American girls living in the Chinatown section of San Francisco.

Through Lily, Malinda Lo shows the reader how dangerous it was to be Chinese and a lesbian when the American public was hyper vigilant against communists and “sexual deviants.” Yet she faces a number of formidable obstacles related to her race, sex and sexual identity. Set in early 1950’s San Francisco, the story’s protagonist Lily Hu is a teenager with big dreams. Last Night at the Telegraph Club is a multi-award winning young adult novel that takes on several heavy topics and does so admirably. Join us now through May 21 for the #CannonBookClub Discussion of Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

Late night at the telegraph club