Stef Soto, Taco Queen

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2017

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Download PDF

Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-12

Chapters 13-24

Chapters 25-36

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Themes

Learning to Trust

The characters of Stef Soto: Taco Queen struggle with trust, particularly due to the pressures of both adolescence and outside prejudice. From the beginning of the book, Stef feels suffocated by her parents’ restrictions. She wants them to see her as mature and capable, and she is frustrated that they don’t allow her to have freedom and responsibility over her choices. The author’s discussion of trust highlights the importance of communication and connection in families, while also addressing the effect prejudice has on immigrant families.

When Stef learns about the Viviana Vega concert, she is determined to convince her parents that she’s mature and responsible enough to attend. To do this, she volunteers to help with tasks she wouldn’t normally do and goes out of her way to do additional things, like making breakfast. Despite her best efforts, Stef’s parents still forbid her from going to the concert. However, when Stef throws herself into tasks to help, such as insisting on attending the city council meeting, she shows her family that she will be there when it counts. Though Stef doesn’t realize it until the very end of the book, acting to help her family bolsters their trust in her and strengthens their relationship. While the concert is off-limits, their trust still grows.

Though Stef believes her parents cruelly lack trust in her, she learns that they restrict her because they are scared. Having both immigrated to the US as teenagers, Stef’s parents still don’t feel completely at home in the country. The people, culture, and customs seem foreign, and they fear Stef struggling to find her place like they did. Stef’s parents don’t distrust Stef. Rather, they distrust the world, which Stef interprets as a lack of belief in her. Watching Stef interact with her environment and seeing how she steps up to defend Tía Perla changes her parents’ outlook. They realize that the US is Stef’s home in a way it is not for them and that she knows how to navigate her world. As a result, they ultimately let their trust in her overpower their fear of the unknown.

Variation in Life Experiences and Perspectives

Each character of Stef Soto: Taco Queen has a unique point of view inspired by their circumstances, culture, and history. As immigrants to the US, Stef’s parents view the world they live in differently from Stef, who was born there and has lived there all her life. Furthermore, some of Stef’s friends have had a vastly different experience than she has, despite being the same age and going to the same school. The author celebrates people’s differences in these examples of individuality and uniqueness, particularly regarding race, identity, and generation.

While the culture of the US shapes Stef’s understanding of the world, her parents still struggle to feel at home in a nation that seems foreign and unlike where they grew up in Mexico. This feeling prompts them to ask Stef, “Can you imagine what it’s like to settle down in a place where you feel so…lost?” (75). As a result, Stef’s parents are cautious and uncertain, while Stef is more confident, which leads to the discrepancy about Stef’s independence. These two very different perspectives exemplify how different cultural experiences lead to different ideas of what constitutes good choices, activities, and ideas.

Though Stef and her parents see the world differently due to a cultural divide, it does not take such a stark difference for experiences to vary. Stef and Amanda, though best friends, also view the world very differently and act in accordance with their unique perspectives. Both girls are products of the homes they grew up in. Thus, while Stef is frustrated and desperate to prove herself because her parents are overbearing, Amanda is more comfortable in her skin because she has generally had more freedom and been able to express herself in ways Stef never felt she could because of her parents’ protective behavior. As a result, Amanda feels less stifled and is able to speak her mind, such as when she calls Stef out for encouraging rumors about her relationship with Viviana Vega. Amanda believes truth and honesty are critical because she grew up in an environment where open communication was a priority.

While Stef’s relationships with her parents and Amanda show her coming into her own perspective, Stef’s relationship with Julia shows how the girls view the same events in different ways. Prior to the events of the book, Stef and Julia were best friends. Over time, the girls drifted apart due to a combination of Stef’s parents being overbearing, Julia managing to get more freedom, and the general flow of how friendships change and develop in adolescence. Throughout the book, Stef attributes the end of her friendship with Julia to Julia deciding Stef wasn’t cool enough for her. This perspective is bolstered by Julia’s haughty actions and attitude, as well as her jealousy when she thinks Stef has one-upped her by actually meeting Viviana Vega. In Chapter 32, when Julia and Stef spend time together before the dance, Julia confesses she felt pushed aside when Stef met Amanda, which is a direct contrast to how Stef views their friendship ending. Without Julia’s point of view, only Stef’s perspective is addressed in the novel. The differences between Stef’s and Julia’s perspectives are hidden until Torres reveals them.

Fighting for What’s Important

At its core, Stef Soto: Taco Queen is a story about learning to recognize the things important enough to fight for. For Stef and her dad, one of these things is Tía Perla. Further, Stef discovers what aspects of herself she should prioritize and cultivate as she matures and experiences peer pressure and a desire for conformity.

To Stef’s dad, Tía Perla is his livelihood. Owning a restaurant has been a lifelong dream for him and purchasing the food truck was the first step toward realizing this dream. When the food truck regulations are introduced in Chapter 9, Stef’s dad immediately knows he will fight any rules that might put him out of business. In addition to being his primary method of making a living, Tía Perla has become family, and Stef’s dad has undying loyalty to his family. The fight for Tía Perla takes the form of the city council meeting, which frightens Stef’s dad. He worries his imperfect English will discredit him, but even so, he speaks at the meeting, showing how important Tía Perla is to him. Even though Stef’s dad plans to sell Tía Perla regardless of the outcome of the regulations, he still fights for the food truck drivers. Having Tía Perla and becoming part of the food truck community has let Stef’s dad see how important these trucks are to their owners, and his willingness to face his fears and stand up for his friends shows the importance of fighting for things that are right and fair.

While Tía Perla is important to Stef’s dad from the beginning of the book, Stef only becomes aware of the truck’s importance in later chapters. To Stef, the truck is a sign of everything she fights against—namely her parents’ control and constant presence. Stef has been fighting against Tía Perla and her parents’ restrictions for so long that it takes the threat of losing the truck for her to remember how much Tía Perla means to her and her family. Watching her dad face his fears to defend his right to drive Tía Perla also helps Stef to see how her own desires should not overtake helping her family, and choosing to attend the city council meeting is the moment Stef realizes that fighting for Tía Perla is also fighting for herself. Following her unexpected arrival at the meeting, Stef’s parents start to see how responsible she’s become.

In addition to fighting for Tía Perla and her family, Stef also learns that she needs to take action if she wants to keep what’s important to her. Art means a great deal to Stef because it lets her express herself in a way she can’t with words. If the art dance isn’t successful, Stef will lose access to the art supplies that are such a critical part of her personal expression. When she is thrust into a leadership role, Stef starts to understand that she needs to work together with the rest of the class if they want the event to be a success. Passively sitting by and hoping for the best might work, but it has a much higher chance of failure than getting directly involved and doing everything in her power to contribute. Stef recognizes that putting in effort won’t guarantee anything, but her art is too important for her not to try. Thus, when it seems like the dance will be cancelled due to the power outage, Stef realizes she has to keep fighting and comes up with a plan, making her realize that “you can’t just let things happen” (114).