Best Foot Forward

Jenna Boller is dripping with newfound maturity after her life-altering summer on the road. She has a job she loves at Gladstone Shoes, a best friend who makes her laugh, and a dysfunctional family she's learning how to handle. Jenna feels ready for anything—until Tanner Cobb, a guy with a past, a police record, and dangerously good looks, walks into her life. Suddenly Jenna's surrounded by crises, including a shoe empire on the verge of crumbling. Tanner's street smarts seem to be what Jenna needs, but can she trust him enough when the going gets tough?

Sixteen-year-old Jenna is back in Chicago after a road trip driving her tough-minded though tender-hearted boss, Mrs. Gladstone, down to Texas to help save her shoe company from a takeover by her sleazy son, Elden. Now Jenna is happily working at Gladstone Shoes while juggling responsibilities at school and at home. She encounters Tanner, "a dangerously cute" teenager when he tries to steal from the shoe store. Mrs. Gladstone decides to hire him instead of pressing charges and makes Jenna his mentor. Both of them learn and grow from their shared work experience

This is an author who handles complex subjects in a manner that doesn't over abuse feelings. She magically weaves the story line and balances humor and angst with the end result of hope.

Jenna Boller is the oldest child. She has a loving younger sister and very stable mother. Sadly though, her father is a knock down drag out alcoholic.

Finding a job selling shoes for Gladstone Shoe company enables her to learn valuable lessons. Bauer knows that people come into our lives when we most need them and thus she introduces the fiesty, elderly character of Mrs. Gladstone. When Mrs. Gladstone's near do well son manipulates the board of directors and buys up the leading shares of the company, his mother is no longer in charge.

Jenna is mentored by show more Mrs. Gladstone and grows to understand that dysfunction in families happens to many, not just Jenna.

Feeling guilty and taking responsibility for her father's alcoholism is a normal trait of a child of an alcoholic and through her relationship with Mrs. Gladstone Jenna begins to learn of forgiveness, of redemption and of the fact that we are not responsible for others. We are indeed only responsible for our own actions.

Highly recommended.

The author has first hand experience with the reality of the sad impact that an alcoholic father has on the family dynamic and on the individual level. show less

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 show more 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! show less

I loved "Rules of the Road" and I was immediately struck by how much Jenna had matured in the interim between that book and this book. I love her employee/caretaker relationship with her boss Mrs. Gladstone, her ambivalent relationship with Tanner, and the spark of some romantic interest in Charlie Duran. Her involvement in Al-Anon added an interesting new dimension, and the struggle to save the shoe company (the "good guys" versus the "bad guys") was actually pretty exciting. Overall a good read!

Who would off thought that someone could get so attached to a shoe store? When the main character of this story starts working at the shoe store, she experiences so much more than expected. This was such a good book! I hope you like it!

Jenna loves her job at Gladstone shoes - she is assistant to the incredible Mrs. Gladstone, the wife of the founder, and head of the company. Things in her troubled life are looking up. But Gladstone Shoes has just merged with a larger company; things are changing, and not for the better. Then Mrs. Gladstone hires a good lucking guy with a police record.