An informative look at the culinary, cultural and historical significance of the taco, much more interesting than you might think.

Taco, by Ignacio M. Sánchez Prado, is another volume in the Object Lessons series which presents everyday and often mundane objects through a different lens than we might be used to seeing them. Most readers will gain some new insight in understanding what a taco is (and isn't) as well as some ideas about the issue of authenticity, which has touched almost everything from food to music and linguistics.

I found the discussions both informative and thought-provoking, especially when I took ideas as they relate to a food such as a taco and applied it to other items that we tend to associate with a specific culture. That is where this series excels for most readers, situating the commonplace within the larger world that surrounds that item's history as well as offering a way to understand or approach other objects.

While there aren't any recipes included, I did come up with some ideas to use in the future as well as taking some of the different styles and looking up recipes online, so while not intended as a recipe book it provided several platforms to dive into the act of making tacos.

Recommended for readers who want some history and deeper understanding of what has become a common food on many tables, or on many street corners.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.

An interesting look into the history of tacos (what it means, the numerous types, and where it’s traveled). I admit to not knowing a ton about tacos (I eat the boxed shells with some meat, veggies, and cheese), but I’m interested in learning more about the places and recipes discussed in this book.

This is somehow an engaging read about tacos-- the history of tacos, the culture, and all kinds of other details. I had no idea there was so much to know about tacos or that it's so interesting!

Taco is a wonderful monograph on one of the most recognized dishes in Mexico: The Taco. Though this book doesn’t have any recipes, it teaches readers about the background of the most popular tacos, the history and future of tacos, and what a taco truly is in a world of fusion and authenticity.

Although I wished to find at least one recipe in this book, I’ve learned so much and gained so much respect for the taco and the variations we can find in the world. I highly recommend this book for anyone wanting to read about tacos and gain a rich guide to different sources. This book will be my gateway drug to many other books about tacos, and I can’t wait to start.

I’d like to thank Boomsbury and Net Galley for allowing me to read an early copy of such an impactful book.

Like the tv show Taco Chronicles but better!

The author, Sanchez Prado does a fantastic job of exploring the historical, cultural, and culinary aspects of what made tacos THE Mexican food.

Mixed with a bit of personal memoir and filled with tons of fascinating information, this non fiction book is perfect for readers interested in food, history and Mexico.

I learnt as much about myself as I did about tacos! Reading this (and a previous unrelated novel) I have recently realised that descriptions of food bore me, so that's a problem for me. I just don't care about food that much. So why request this book? Because I only just worked that out about myself! Also, I wasn't expecting quite so much describing of taco fillings.

There are arguments in this book that seem very repetitious, harping on and on about authenticity. Again, these might be interesting to some people, but I settled this for myself long ago. I found the discussions that were situated in the broader cultural sphere interesting but still repetitive. They somehow manage to be too shallow and too deep at the same time. I think it sits in the tension felt in the US between Mexican and American and where they intersect. As an Australian, this either needed to be more teased out (except this wasn't the book that was being written). I did learn that Taco Bell, a company that required a 20 year legal battle to open in Australia, is terrible. Too much cumin.

The language is a little odd - the author repeatedly uses the word 'thusly' which is not a word that adds much value and seemed fake fancy to me. So, to sum up - this one didn't interest me, but may well be more interesting to people with different tastes or from a different region.

Thanks to Bloomsbury Press and NetGalley for a free eArc in exchange for an honest review.

Simply put, this is a wonderful piece of nonfiction. It’s a fairly short read, yet packs an eye-opening wallop with how it reveals the deep layers of complexity and diversity of its subject matter previously unknown to me, insuring in turn that I will never be able to look at a taco going forward the same way again without a new sense of thoughtfulness.

This was something different to get into for sure. I absolutely appreciated and enjoyed the author's route into celebrating one of my favorite foods of all time. It was pure curiosity and obsession to get to know this amazing dish, and I enjoyed reading all about it.

How can you not enjoy reading about the culture and the history and the baseline of what makes a dish...pardon me for labeling this...a rather powerful dish?! Yes, powerful, because tacos would draw so much into relationships with each other and with food and with our diet and then everything else in between.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

In this brief book, Mexican-American author and academic Ignacio M. Sánchez Prado considers the taco in all its humble glory. Along the way he ponders the role of the ubiquitous dish in Mexican and Mexican-American culture, interrogates notions of “authenticity,” and addresses the place of the tortilla and its analogues in international cuisine. He also eats and compares a lot of tacos, from innovative concoctions at high-end restaurants to the lowliest offerings at Taco Bell.

Sánchez Prado is a foodie with an educated palate. I am more on the picky side, so I found myself skimming his rapturous descriptions of unexpected flavor combinations and textures. While I couldn’t relate to his adventurous, discerning approach to food, I did find Sanchez Prado’s search for the true significance of the taco educational and even entertaining.

I received an electronic copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated in any way.

Taco is a smart, compact exploration of one of Mexico’s most beloved (and globally misunderstood) foods. Sánchez Prado dives deep into the cultural, historical, and even political significance of the taco, offering much more than just a foodie perspective.

It’s not a cookbook—it’s a cultural commentary—and while it can be a bit academic at times, it’s incredibly insightful. I walked away with a greater appreciation for the taco’s origins and the importance of food as identity.

A great read for anyone interested in food culture and Latin American studies! 🌮

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was my first Object Lessons book and for someone who isn't a huge history reader, especially non - fiction, I still found myself captivated by this book. It is such a thoughtfully written book about an absolute favourite food of mine. It really gave me pause to think about tacos and what exactly do I like about them, while also educating me about its history and evolution. This entire book is written as a love letter to tacos and you can really feel that throughout the pages.

I will say, I was really hoping to see some recipes in the book from the author, but that is just a personal preference and should no way be seen as a negative opinion about the book.

I'm looking forward to going and checking out more Object Lessons in the future and am on my way to get a taco.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Academic for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

*This book was received as an advanced Reviewer's copy from NetGalley.

It's hard to find someone who doesn't like tacos. But what is a taco? Is it that thing you get from the 'Bell that is crunchy and full of sour cream? Or is it something else? Is it in a corn tortilla or a flour one?

Prado explores the origin of tacos and the variations in this short history as part of the collection in Object Lessons. In origin, the South American roots (and other international roots) are explored along with the migration from that corn tortilla to a flour one (based on availability of ingredients in a given region).

He also touches on the sociology of the taco and the people who both make them and eat them and how there can be a discrepancy in the appreciation for something and the loss of its roots or the appreciation of the people who make it.

Definitely interesting although I did expect to learn more about the taco itself, not just it's varied creators and the places of origin.

Review by M. Reynard 2025

This was an excellent book. It was well-written. I would highly recommend this book. It's very easy to read.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC.

Taco dives deep into the history and culture surrounding tacos. This book is extremely well researched and cited however it is very digestible for someone with little to no culinary background. It is an excellent way to learn and understand what tacos mean to Mexico and its people. I loved the personal stories that the author wove into the book. I also appreciate that while a lot of the book focused on fun and interesting facts it also touched on the more serious parts of the discrimination of Mexican Americans. Overall, it was an excellent read.

In the veritable banquet that is America, there is perhaps no more ubiquitous and universally beloved cultural import than the humble taco, from our neighbor across the southern border. If you are not hungry when you start this delightful book, you will be by the time you finish. Chock full of anecdotes from Sánchez Prado's childhood and adult life as a binational of Mexico and the US, this book, through his skillful argumentation, asks us to set aside our obsession with "authenticity" and appreciate each taco for the expression of diffuse cultures that it is, whether consumed in a fine dining establishment or from a street vendor. And yes, Taco Bell gets addressed here, too. A fantastic read, and one that will have broad general appeal. I even plan to use it in my immigration law classes, where we talk about food as culture, and the contributions of immigrants to the American patchwork. Highly recommended. My thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Academic for allowing me the privilege of a complimentary advance copy in exchange for honest feedback.

A short read on the history of one of the world’s favorite foods. I will say I was expecting a few recipes to pop up in this, but that’s on me the reader for not understanding what the Object Lessons Series was before diving into this. Now I’m hungry and the dinner I have planned won’t satisfy the same way a taco would right now.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Academic for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Taco draws heavily from the experience of its author, Ignacio M. Sánchez Prado to detail how a taco is made, where they are made, to the broader concerns of representation and global differences.It is both illuminating and a driver of appetite.

The work is divided into 8 chapters grouped around central themes expanded from the list above. Each chapter ends offers notes and the entire book ends with a list of recommended further reading. Ignacio M. Sánchez Prado shares from his personal experience growing up where tacos where plentiful and varied comparing it quite unfavorably to his first experience of Taco Bell. But he also goes beyond the personal to discuss how and why Taco Bell was founded and continues to this day. One of the surprising bits of information is that in Mexico City the vast majority of inhabitants are less than 400 meters from a taco seller (pg 13).

It is a taco tour that explores the variety of tacos available to the eater and the extended cultural connotations of the cuisine.

Recommended to readers of food history, contemporary eating or culture.

Taco is another instalment in the Object Lessons series, focusing on the taco and its fame as a Mexican food. The book explores elements of the taco such as the definition of what one is and what has caused variations such as soft and hard tortillas, whilst also delving deep into ideas of authenticity and who can make Mexican food.

The Object Lessons series is often delightful, but Taco has definitely been one of my favourites. I felt like I learned a lot not only from the information about tacos, but from Sánchez Prado's personal experiences as someone from Mexico City who has tried a vast range of tacos (and has opinions re: some of the big debates around tacos). As someone from the UK (where tacos weren't even that well-known not that long ago, especially anything other than an Old El Paso kit), I liked how the book touched on a lot of aspects of Mexican cuisine and culture, whilst also highlighting what has happened to the taco once it crossed the border into the USA. The only downside is, I'm now craving tacos.

A nice, quick read diving into the culture and history of tacos. I loved reading this, it gave me more insight and appreciation for the taco.