The novel’s most significant symbol is introduced in Chapter 4: Mama’s bright-red umbrella. Lucia is initially embarrassed when her mother carries the red umbrella. To her, it signifies her mother’s odd behavior. She wishes her mother would carry a “plain black one” (43). She tries to convince Mama to leave the umbrella by claiming that “red is the color of the revolution,” but Mama responds, “No, Lucia. The revolution may have taken over a lot of things, but it doesn’t own a color” (43). Mama’s choice to carry the red umbrella is one small way she can rebel against the government and maintain her identity.

The red umbrella takes on new meaning when it reappears in Chapter 16. The children see the umbrella open in the crowd and spot their parents below the airplane. Here, the umbrella represents the Alvarez family as a tether that ties Lucia and Frankie to their parents. It also distinguishes them from the crowd, signifying their resistance to Castro and the revolution.

The umbrella’s final appearance occurs in the last chapter, when Papa unexpectedly appears at the airport, using the umbrella as a cane to help him walk. Like the Alvarezes, the umbrella survived the trials in Cuba and arrived safely in the US.