Best Foot Forward

Reviewed by Cana Rensberger for TeensReadToo.com

She did it again! Joan Bauer hooked me on yet another novel about selling shoes!

I had previously read RULES OF THE ROAD, where we were introduced to Jenna Boller. In BEST FOOT FORWARD we again root for Jenna of Gladstone Shoes. I even *ahem* took this book to church to read between Sunday School and the church service. It was that good.

Mrs. Gladstone puts Jenna in charge of Tanner, a boy Jenna's age, after he tries to steal some shoes from them. Jenna's not sure letting him work for the company is the best idea Mrs. Gladstone has had; even so, Jenna's confidence grows as she encourages Tanner to be his best.

Changes are coming fast since the merger of Gladstone Shoes and Shoe Warehouse Corporation. Advertising strategies become distasteful. The quality of the product is suffering. Jenna and Mrs. Gladstone's questions aren't being answered.

When the higher-ups in the company begin making unethical business decisions, Mrs. Gladstone entrusts Jenna with the investigation. When Jenna finds out that Mrs. Gladstone's son is involved, she has to confide in somebody. Jenna chooses Tanner and is astounded at the things he's noticed. She prepares Mrs. Gladstone for the bad news and shares an understanding of being disappointed by someone you love.

BEST FOOT FORWARD is remarkable in its premise of teens doing the right thing only because it's the right thing to do. This is a common theme throughout Ms. Bauer's books, and, once again, she has made me grateful that I'm lucky enough to spend time with teens and that I have the privilege of making an impression upon them - as they do on me.

This is another Joan Bauer must read!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Beat a path to this book. . .

Jenna Boller is the stereotypical high school overachiever. She is dependable, has a strong work ethic, and is given responsibilities at her work place that are in line with her behavior. Enter Tanner Cobb, a ¿player¿ with dubious ethics. When Mrs. Gladstone, the matriarch of Gladstone Shoes, decides to take Tanner on as her personal rescue project, Jenna has to deal with a maelstrom of feelings about both Tanner and humanity. This was a quick read, and was unusual in its celebration of moral behavior without crossing over the line of preaching. The characters are given emotional responses that have the emotional spectrum of flaws and triumphs that all human beings possess. This story touches on the impact alcoholic family, juvenile crime, and business ethics and could easily be used in Health, Child Development, and business classes.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

a reviewer

She did it again! Joan Bauer hooked me on yet another novel about selling shoes! I had previously read RULES OF THE ROAD, where we were introduced to Jenna Boller. In BEST FOOT FORWARD we again root for Jenna of Gladstone Shoes. I even *ahem* took this book to church to read between Sunday School and the church service. It was that good. Mrs. Gladstone puts Jenna in charge of Tanner, a boy Jenna's age, after he tries to steal some shoes from them. Jenna's not sure letting him work for the company is the best idea Mrs. Gladstone has had even so, Jenna's confidence grows as she encourages Tanner to be his best. Changes are coming fast since the merger of Gladstone Shoes and Shoe Warehouse Corporation. Advertising strategies become distasteful. The quality of the product is suffering. Jenna and Mrs. Gladstone¿s questions aren¿t being answered. When the higher-ups in the company begin making unethical business decisions, Mrs. Gladstone entrusts Jenna with the investigation. When Jenna finds out that Mrs. Gladstone's son is involved, she has to confide in somebody. Jenna chooses Tanner and is astounded at the things he¿s noticed. She prepares Mrs. Gladstone for the bad news and shares an understanding of being disappointed by someone you love. BEST FOOT FORWARD is remarkable in its premise of teens doing the right thing only because it's the right thing to do. This is a common theme throughout Ms. Bauer's books, and, once again, she has made me grateful that I'm lucky enough to spend time with teens and that I have the privilege of making an impression upon them - as they do on me. This is another Joan Bauer must read! **Reviewed by: Cana Rensberger

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Best Foot Forward = Great Book

This is a sequal to a book, Rules of the Road, by Joan Bauer. The book is set in Chicago, IL. The main characters name is Jenna Boller. She lives with her mom, and little sis, Faith. Her dad is an acaholic and doesnt live with her anymore. Living w/ a dad as an acaholic doesnt help Jenna. She goes to Al-Anon meetings to help with the problem. In this book she is @ the shoe store. There is a man, Tanner Cobb, who steals from the store and works there to make up for it. Jenna thinks he is bad and doesnt trust him. But throught the book you get to learn how he isnt so bad, and you also get to know alot about the characters. How I got into this book was my sister showing me her copy and saying I should read it. I read the first book first, then was hooked on it and stayed up until 2 am to finish the book. I was sad when is was over, but I know I will read it again. This book doesnt have as much of a plot as Rules of the Road, the first book, but this one is pretty good. I totally recommend this book. Even if you look at the book and think 'bor-ring', its NOT. Read this book.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Hope

I could not wat 2 read it.

Actully please dont answer to that last comment. Thank you.

Good book

Okay

I had to read this book for school. It was better than i thought but it was still boring.

Awesome

Really good especiahlly on my awesome nook

Great Read

I loved Jenna, she is a very shy and determined girl. I loved how she was with her crush, so clumsy........I enjoyed little old Mrs. Gladstone.

Best Foot Forward

I really like this book. The characters are funny and the conflict is kinda unique. You wouldn't think a simple shoe store could have such a cool story. I would reccomend this to a lot of my friends. This book was really good!

Fantastic

Best Foot Forward was enthralling. I couldn't put it down for the day it took me to read (it was good, but a very quick read). I didn't know it was a sequel until I read the other reviews on this site. I had read some of Joan Bauer's other books and thought that I'd give this one a try. One of the things that I really liked about this book was that the characters were amazing. Even the backround characters seemed important. I loved Tanner, and found myself liking him even though he kept on doing bad things, like shoplifting shoes. I knew he would turn out to be good in the end, although Jenna disagreed with me. I also loved Mrs. Gladstone; she was such a great role model character. She never gave up in her battle against her son and Shoe Warehouse, Inc. She was such a strong character...you don't find them very often, or at least I don't. I also loved seeing how Jenna dealt with her father's alcoholism, because books that deal with problems like family members who are smokers or alcoholics (or dead) are often cliched. Best Foot Foward gets a 5 out of 5 stars for its charm, wit, and compassion- it fit like a pair of fuzzy slippers.

First book was better.

I thought this book was ok. The first one was much more better! This book was not what I thought it would be. Overall, it was a good read. (:

Jenna is wonderful

This is the "companion novel" to Rules of the Road (another fabulous book). Jenna Boller is inspiring the way she handles herself, her life, and others. She has a delightful sense of humor, and her boss is the best there ever was. Joan Bauer books are always wonderful, and while fairly quick reads, you will be very happy to read them again.

"Amazing, just loved, 'best foot forward'"

I positively loved 'best foot forward' its in my top 20....lol

a music-obsessed book freak

hey, this was a fast book to pass the time. it was not as good as rules of the road, seeing as there was almost no point to it. it didn't really convey any message whatsoever. it was just normal, nothing special. you don't need to read the sequel if you don't want to.

LOVED IT!!

I absolutely LOVE Joan Bauer, she is my FAV author! This was a perfect sequel to Rules of the Road although it turned out differently then i thought it would! :)

My Review

When I read the inside cover on this book, it sounded very good. Much to my surprise, this was the dullest book that I've every read. There was no plot, and nothing exciting happened. I mean, who writes a book about problems at a shoe store?

Joan Bauer Rocks!

I just love Joan Bauer books. I've read the book before this and it's good too, 'Rules of the Road.' Joan Bauer also has some other good books as well. 'Best Foot Forward' is a great book. It shows how Jenna deals with her problems/life in her unique way that is really entertaining.

wow

u see i saw this and i thought i should read it. i thought it looked familiar as a new realease now i know it came out a month ago. so for the book it was ok the only thing that i dont like is the relationship between tanner and bec. that is all i will say but it such a surprise from what u r thinkng in the beginning of the book.

Major Bookworm...

When I read this book, I thought it would be a straight out romance novel... So I bought it.. This book disappointed me but i guess it was ok... It gets kind of boring later on...