Becoming Naomi León

by Pam Muñoz Ryan

Overview

From Newbery Honoree and New York Times bestseller Pam Muñoz Ryan comes a gripping story about familial love, loyalty, and identity. Perfect for fans of Kate DiCamillo and Rita Williams-Garcia.

Schneider Family Book Award Winner

Pura Belpré Honor Book

Children’s Literature Legacy Award Winner

"Engrossing." — New York Times

Naomi Soledad León Outlaw has had a lot to contend with in her young life, her name for one. Then there are her clothes (sewn in polyester by Gram), her difficulty speaking up, and her status at school as "nobody special." But according to Gram's self-prophecies, most problems can be overcome with positive thinking. Luckily, Naomi also has her carving to strengthen her spirit. And life with Gram and her little brother, Owen, is happy and peaceful. That is, until their mother reappears for the first time in seven years, stirring up all sorts of questions and challenging Naomi to discover who she really is.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780439269971
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	10/01/2005
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	53,731
Product dimensions:	5.25(w) x 7.63(h) x (d)
Lexile:	830L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Pam Muñoz Ryan is the recipient the NEA's Human and Civil Rights Award, the PEN America Award, and the 2024 Children’s Literature Legacy Award for her body of work. She was the 2018 U.S. nominee for the international Hans Christian Andersen Award. She received a Newbery Honor Medal and the Kirkus Prize for her New York Times bestselling novel, Echo. Her other celebrated novels, Esperanza Rising, The Dreamer, Riding Freedom, Becoming Naomi Léon, Paint the Wind, and Mañanaland, have received countless accolades, among them the Pura Belpré Award, the Jane Addams Children's Book Award, and the Américas Award. Her acclaimed picture books include Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride and the Sibert Honor book When Marian Sang, both illustrated by Brian Selznick, Mice and Beans illustrated by Joe Cepeda, and Tony Baloney illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham, as well as a beginning reader series featuring Tony Baloney. Ryan lives near San Diego, California, with her family.

Table of Contents

	A rabble of yesterdays	1
1	A paddling of ducks	3
2	A skulk of foxes	16
3	A lamentation of swans	26
4	A memory of elephants	34
5	A charm of hummingbirds	43
6	A school of fish	52
7	An unkindness of ravens	61
8	A burden of mules	75
9	A shiver of sharks	88
10	A schizophrenia of hawks	107
11	A flight of swallows	123
	A passel of todays	137
12	A drey of squirrels	139
13	A sleuth of bears	154
14	A leap of leopards	167
15	A piteousness of doves	178
16	A team of horses	189
17	An exaltation of starlings	201
18	A pride of lions	211
19	A cry of hounds	218
20	A crash of hippopotami	227
21	A brood of chicks	241
	A murmuration of tomorrows	244

Editorial Reviews

Awards and Praise for Becoming Naomi León:A Pura Belpré Honor BookAmericas Award, CommendedSchneider Family Book Award WinnerTomás Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award WinnerBook Sense Book of the Year Award Honor Book"Engrossing." — The New York Times"Ryan's sure-handed storytelling and affection for her characters convey a clear sense of Naomi's triumph, as she becomes "who I was meant to be." Kirkus Reviews, starred review"Once again, Ryan crystallizes the essence of settings and characters through potent, economic prose... a tender tale about family love and loyalty." Publishers Weekly, starred review"Exciting...heartbreaking." — Booklist"[Becoming Naomi León] has its own uniquely affecting emotional core." — The Horn Book "Ryan has written a moving book about family dynamics. While she explores the youngsters' Mexican heritage and gives a vivid picture of life in and the art of Oaxaca, her story is universal, showing the strong bonds and love that make up an extended family. All of the characters are well drawn, and readers will share Naomi's fear until the judge makes the final decision about her future." — School Library Journal "Symbols abound, and readers of all ages will enjoy reading of Naomi's transformation and triumph." — VOYA

From the Publisher

Fifth-grader Naomi's great-grandmother has been a loving guardian for Naomi and Owen, her handicapped brother, since their mother divorced their father and abandoned them in Lemon Tree, Calif., seven years before. When the children's mother, Skyla, makes a sudden reappearance, she wants Naomi to leave Gram and Owen to move to Las Vegas-and Gram fears that Skyla and her new boyfriend have ulterior motives. "What locked the possibility of catastrophe in my mind, was that Gram and Fabiola were going to miss Wheel of Fortune, and that was going to mess up their 744 nights-in-a-row record," Naomi thinks. Feisty Gram takes action: she and Fabiola and her husband, who hail from Oaxaca City, Mexico, and who knew the children's father, take the children and embark on an odyssey of sorts, in search of their father at Oaxaca's annual radish-carving festival. Once again, Ryan (Esperanza Rising) crystallizes the essence of settings and characters through potent, economic prose. Through Naomi's first-person narration, the author gently captures the girl's simultaneous attraction to and wariness of her mother with Naomi's first impression: "I couldn't take my eyes off her lipstick. It was the exact same color as her hair and went up and down in a perfect rounded M on her top lip." And the heroine's skill with carving connects her to her father long before they finally meet. Sharing her protagonist's love of language, artistic sensibility and keen sensitivity, Ryan creates a tender tale about family love and loyalty. Ages 8-12. (Sept.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Gr 5-8-Gram, Naomi, and Owen are happy at Avocado Acres Trailer Rancho until the day the children's mother arrives. After being gone so long that they don't recognize her, Skyla enters their lives, lavishing attention and presents on fifth-grade Naomi; however, she never seems to include Owen. After several weeks, the truth about her reappearance becomes apparent. Clive, her new boyfriend, wants Naomi to live with them and become the permanent baby-sitter for his daughter. The ensuing custody battle forces Gram, Naomi, Owen and a neighbor couple to make a hasty trip to Mexico to look for Santiago, the children's biological father and a well-known wood-carver. After a physically and emotionally exhausting search, they finally find him at the annual Christmas festival in their ancestral village. Even though the children will continue to live with their great-grandmother, this reunion gives them the reassurance of their father's love and support. Ryan has written a moving book about family dynamics. While she explores the youngsters' Mexican heritage and gives a vivid picture of life in and the art of Oaxaca, her story is universal, showing the strong bonds and love that make up an extended family. All of the characters are well drawn, and readers will share Naomi's fear until the judge makes the final decision about her future.-Sharon Morrison, Southeastern Oklahoma State University, Durant, OK Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

First-person narrator Naomi Len Outlaw and her bright, physically lopsided little brother Owen feel safe in the routines of life in Lemon Grove, California, with great-grandmother Gram. Naomi, a soft-voiced list-maker and word-collector, is also a gifted soap-carver-something inherited, it turns out, from the Mexican father from whom she and Owen were separated as small children. The unexpected arrival of Naomi's long-absent mother throws everything off balance. The troubled young woman's difficulties threaten to overturn the security Gram has worked to provide for Naomi and Owen. With friends' help, Gram takes the children to Oaxaca City to find their father and gain his support in her custody appeal. Here they are immersed in a world of warmth and friendship, where Naomi's longing to meet the father she dimly remembers intensifies. The annual December radish-carving festival gives Naomi's creativity a chance to shine and makes the perfect setting for a reunion. Naomi's matter-of-fact narrative is suffused with her worries and hopes, along with her protective love for her brother and great-grandmother. Ryan's sure-handed storytelling and affection for her characters convey a clear sense of Naomi's triumph, as she becomes "who I was meant to be." (Fiction. 10-14)First printing of 50,000

Kirkus Reviews