Becoming Naomi León Quotes

“How many others were walking around and not even knowing that someone far away cared for them? Imagine all that love floating in the air, waiting to land on someone's life!”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“There it was again, the good and bad all rolled into a meatball.”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“You know something, Naomi? Your voice is louder.”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“I also had a father, who had loved for a long time without being nearby. How many others were walking around and not even knowing that someone far away cared for them? Imagine all that love floating in the air, waiting to land on someone's life.”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“Gram said that when you thought positive, you could make things happen and when it did happen, it was called a self-prophecy.”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“I always thought the biggest problem in my life was my name, Naomi Soledad Leon Outlaw, but little did I know that it was the least of my troubles or that someday I would live up to it.”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“The next morning, standing in front of the narrow mirror in Gram’s bedroom, I admired the Mexican girl looking back at me.”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi Leon

“Part of me couldn’t wait to see her again. The other part of me was wringing my hands like a contestant in the Worrywart Olympics.”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“Some kids had blankets or stuffed animals they dragged around. Others got contentment from twirling their hair or sucking their thumbs. Owen had to have tape stuck to his shirt, the clear kind people used to wrap presents. For some reason, it brought him a peculiar satisfaction.”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“She wore jeans, red boots, a black leather jacket and a hefty splash of sweet gardenia perfume. Her hair looked like that crayon called maroon, the one that’s not purple and not red, but something in between and for some reason, 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.”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“Gram had taken to calling me “brown shaggy dog” because of my wild mop and my predisposition to brown-ness (eyes, hair and skin).”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“And I mulled over my sorry situation at school, which was three boys in my 5th grade class who decided that Outlaw was the funniest last name in the universe. They did not give me an ounce of peace.”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“You left those children with me when that boy was a year old and covered head to hide with infected insect bites. Naomi was four and didn’t even talk until she was almost six…”


“Don’t make it out like it was such a big deal,” interrupted Skyla. “Naomi was always stubborn and quiet, and Owen just had a few flea bites.”

“No, ma’am,” said Gram. “Naomi went to a counselor for two years. She had selective mutism, that’s what it’s called, from insecurities and Lord knows what other trauma during her young life. That’s what the counselor told us, and Naomi still doesn’t talk much. Owen was on antibiotics for three months to get him cleared up. There’s no telling what went on in Mexico that caused those children’s abdominations. And now, 7 years later, after you never sent a card or made a telephone call to even let us know you were alive, you want to talk about your rights?”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi León

“You must throw your bowl in the courtyard near the side of the church. Look. Over there.” We turned to see a man and a woman facing away from the church and throwing their bowls back over their shoulders toward a courtyard The bowls shattered on the cobblestones and landed among thousands of pottery pieces. “It is tradition so that good luck will follow you into the New Year,” said Fabiola. “You must do the same.”
― Pam Muñoz Ryan, Becoming Naomi Leon