Rules of the Road [Paperback]

Joan Bauer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1999

. Rules of the Road is about a 16 year-old girl named Jenna Boller whose dad is an alcoholic. One day Jenna's father comes into the shoe store that she works at drunk. The day that her father came in drunk just happened to be that the owner of Gladstone's Shoes, Mrs. Madeline Gladstone (owner of 176 outlets in 37 states) was making her check-up's on how business was going. But instead of getting angry she hires Jenna to drive her to Texas from Chicago. Jenna thinks that she can run from her life by going on this road trip. She helps more than just her self and learns the rules of the road of life. Because you never know were life is going to take you.

Product Details

• Paperback: 201 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Inc. (1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439137373
• ISBN-13: 978-0439137379
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (139 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,226,461 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

"I had moved from journalism to screenwriting when one of the biggest challenges of my life occurred. I was in a serious auto accident which injured my neck and back severely and required neurosurgery. It was a long road back to wholeness, but during that time I wrote Squashed, my first young adult novel. The humor in that story kept me going. Over the years, I have come to understand how deeply I need to laugh. It's like oxygen to me. My best times as a writer are when I'm working on a book and laughing while I'm writing. Then I know I've got something." Joan's first novel, Squashed, won the Delacorte Prize for a First Young Adult Novel. Five novels for young adult readers have followed: Thwonk, Sticks, Rules of the Road (LA Times Book Prize and Golden Kite), Backwater and Hope was Here (Newbery Honor Medal). Joan lives in Darien, CT with her husband and daughter.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You go, girl!, January 12, 2000

By 

Jackie Maibach - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rules of the Road (Mass Market Paperback)

Rules of the Road was included as one of the required texts for our Reading and Writing Festival to be held in the spring. As a teacher, I am thrilled that a book focusing on the inner strengths of a 16-year-old girl was included. Sure, there are myriads of books addressing heroines -- but this book is different. We get a sense of Jenna's dismay with adolescence; she deals with divorce, alcoholism, and loneliness with a unique sense of charm and wit. We hear Jenna's voice maturing throughout the saga of driving to Texas -- and are charmed by her relationship with her aging boss. What book have you read lately that addresses respect for elders, discusses the horrors of alcoholism, the sadness of Alzheimers, and the inequities of being young, and even integrates a lesson in economics! All in a rambunctious, lively dialogue emanating from the soul of a young lady who I would love to have in my classroom. I tend to "read-between-the-lines" of every dialogue journal I review after reading such a moving book. Thank you, Joan Bauer.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Awesome characters, liked this lots better than her new one, July 11, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Rules of the Road (Hardcover)

I've read two of Joan Bauers books, this one and Backwater, and I really liked this one more, especially because of the narrator! She was really believable with a lot of spirit, and humor. All the other characters were fabulous too. Some people might not like the way in Bauer books how each main character has their "thing" (like in Squashed, it was growing pumpkins/agriculture, or Backwater, the girl was obsessed w/ history) but Jenna's drive here (shoes and selling) brought the story up, instead of in Backwater, where I thought it slowed the story down. DEFINITELY, DEFINITELY read this one!

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Every female from the age of 10 should read this book!, August 3, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Rules of the Road (Hardcover)

I'm an adult/female who reviews dozens of middle grade and young adult books as part of my job. I haven't been this enthusiastic about a book since "The Agony of Alice." I laughed out loud and had tears in my eyes..all within a few pages! Joan Bauer touches upon the traditional teenage concerns...feeling awkward & ugly at times and being an outsider at school. Everyone, no matter what age they are now, will relate to Jenna's feelings. But, more importantly, the relationship between Jenna, the "smart" 17 year-old, and Mrs. Gladstone, the ageless 73 year-old, will convince you that there are are no age limits on friendship.