Becoming Naomi Leon

Los animalitos is Spanish for “little animals.” Naomi’s soap carvings are all groups of small animals. Both the animals themselves and the act of carving them represent comfort and later in the novel, a tie to her cultural heritage, for Naomi. When she needs help falling asleep, she pulls out a group of elephants and places them on the shelf above her bed. Gram and Bernardo turned her on to carving at a young age because Gram hoped it would soothe Naomi’s nerves to keep her hands and mind busy. 

The theme of family and group belonging is highlighted through Naomi’s little animals. Naomi’s carving the animals in groups evokes family groups—they are never alone, always safe together, the same way Naomi and Owen travel with their family group. Even the contest carving for La Noche de los Rábanos consists of little groups of animals from across the animal kingdom. The image evokes communities made up of families, made of little groups of people all together.

Los animalitos also strengthen Naomi’s connection to her father’s side of the family. In Oaxaca, she learns that her father also carves little animals, which he sends to his aunt Teresa. She paints them, and he sells them in shops near the beach.