The latest Amazon reviews of “Dragons Love Tacos” are less than great. “Seriously, a fire-breathing dragon doesn’t like spicy tacos???!!!???” writes one reader – or, more likely, a parent or guardian of a reader, since we are talking about a picture book.
“I just don’t get the hype,” wrote another critic.
Nevertheless, “Dragons Love Tacos” has nearly 15,000 ratings, with an average of 4.8 stars. It celebrates its 10th anniversary this month, with a whopping 357 weeks as a bestseller. As you can imagine, the negative feedback is coming from adults who have had enough of repeated requests for “Dragons Love Tacos.” (If you’ve been master of ceremonies before bed, you’ll understand why wedding singers loathe “At Last.”)
So how did Adam Rubin, the author of “Dragons Love Tacos” and Daniel Salmieri, the creator of the book’s detailed illustrations, celebrate their juggernaut’s birthday? They went out for tacos, of course. In a phone interview, Rubin recalled their pilgrimage to Brooklyn’s Taqueria al Pastor, where the pair enjoyed a meal with all the toppings plus spicy salsa. “When it hits a certain heat threshold, I get the hiccups and that’s how I know I’ve reached my limit,” Rubin said.
Before writing “Dragons Love Tacos,” which inspired a sequel, a series of stuffed animals, a six-foot dragon costume, and countless themed birthday parties, Rubin was an ad copywriter working on Happy Meal commercials. “I would work all day and then come home and write at my kitchen table in the evening,” he said. “When I sent Dan the first draft of ‘Dragons Love Tacos,’ he was the first to say, ‘This is going to be big.'”
The story is inspired by a small statue in Rubin’s childhood home – a statue that sat on his father’s desk that appeared to be a dragon eating a taco. “It’s just always stayed in my mind that dragons love tacos, of course,” Rubin explained. “It kind of makes a twisted sense. But by that logic, a dragon probably wouldn’t like spicy salsa. Unlike humans who can enjoy spicy salsa with very little consequence, a dragon will burst into flames.”
Rubin and Salmieri celebrated the publication of the book with a modest event at Books of Wonder in New York City. Then (surprise!) they started eating tacos. Rubin sounded pleasantly stunned by what happened next, including bestselling, merchandise, and invitations to attend birthday parties hosted by strangers. “It was word of mouth,” he said. “They were independent booksellers. They were eager parents who said to their friends, ‘Does your kid like tacos? Let me buy you this book.’”
Elisabeth Egan is an editor at the Book Review and author of ‘A Window Opens’.
