Best Foot Forward

May 30, 2005
Lots of teenage girls go crazy for shoes, but 16-year-old Jenna Boller is gaga for the shoe business—especially as it's run by her employer and role model Madeline Gladstone, matriarch of Gladstone Shoes. In this fittingly kicky companion to Rules of the Road
, readers accompany Jenna on a personal and professional journey that leaves her standing taller than ever in her Rolling Walkers. The road to a job well done is littered with detours, however. Bauer takes Jenna emotionally deeper here, as the heroine struggles in her home life—she is trying to accept her now-absent alcoholic father and be supportive of her mother and younger sister—and these challenges are always on her mind, even as things get especially chaotic at work. Gladstone's recent merger with a larger company is fraught with problems and Jenna finds herself helping to untangle an unpleasant web of corporate corruption. She must also micromanage (at Mrs. Gladstone's insistence) a new hire who once shoplifted shoes from the store. That leaves little time for having fun or for exploring a budding romance with Charlie from the local doughnut shop. But in Bauer's sure hand, Jenna's compassion and burgeoning confidence bubble up when she needs them most and slowly harden into a solid, likeable core. The teen's efforts to put her best foot forward pay off in ways she couldn't imagine. And via vivid characterizations, crisp, believable dialogue and some exciting scenarios, Bauer keeps her fans hooked for an entertaining ride. Ages 12-up.

January 1, 2006
Gr 7-10 -In Joan Bauer's sequel (Putnam, 2005) to "Rules of the Road" (Putnam, 1998), Jenna Boller is back at work in the shoe store after spending the summer driving her boss, Mrs. Gladstone, from Chicago to Texas. As she gears up for 11th grade, she splits her time between home, Al-anon meetings, and her much-loved job at Gladstone Shoes. Jenna is appalled when Mrs. Gladstone offers shoplifter Tanner Cobb a job. And when Mrs. G. insists that Jenna mentor Tanner, she grudgingly agrees. Tanner's good looks and charm do little to win over Jenna, but his obvious love for his broken family persuades her that he just might be trustworthy. When Mrs. G's horrible son brings Gladstone Shoes to its corporate knees, Jenna and Tanner unite behind the owner. Narrator Kathe Mazur is just the right voice for Jenna, allowing her independence and vulnerability to shine through. While the plot is uncomplicated and a story about a girl working in a shoe store may be a hard sell to teens, those who listen will be richly rewarded. -"Tricia Melgaard, Centennial Middle School, Broken Arrow, OK"

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