THE COUNTER, by Kevin Blackwood, Wooden Pagoda Press, Eugene, Ore., 2002, 311 pages, $14.

The way Kevin Blackwood paints it, gambling is an insidious business where casinos thwart skilled players – even kicking them out – for using their brains and making any significant money. Professional blackjack players, who count the high cards to determine the probability for the next hand, are treated like pariahs for beating the casinos honestly at their own game.

A Belfast native, Blackwood was one such blackjack player, who learned the craft of card-counting, but was harassed and repeatedly shown the door at casinos. He eventually settled down in Eugene, Ore., where he married and has two teen-age sons. Scrabble and backgammon have become his games of choice.

Drawing from his own experiences, Blackwood has written “The Counter,” which follows Raven Townsend, the son of a poor, narrow-minded Camden farmer, who is determined to beat the odds of his upbringing.

Practicing dribbling for hours on snowy and ice-coated roads, Townsend manages to land a basketball scholarship to Wheaton College. His passion is archaeology, but his savings run out before he obtains a Ph.D. Mathematically gifted, always having beaten his friends at rummy and cribbage, he reads a Sports Illustrated article about Ivy-League poker and blackjack players, and a book by a blackjack pro further persuades him that gambling is the answer to his financial woes.

Woven throughout the book is Townsend’s moral conflict as a devout Baptist who gambles, and the accompanying lifestyle, traveling from one glitzy casino to another. An on- and-off-again romance with a prim, wealthy young woman he met on Vinalhaven – who shares his love of archaeology – and his relationship with his crusty father are also common threads.

“The Counter” opens at The Palace in Las Vegas, where Townsend dons a blond wig in an attempt to fool the casino’s security who had thrown him out a previous time – not for cheating or rowdy behavior – but for honestly winning more than $20,000 at blackjack. When it comes to card-counting, the book’s major theme, the author could have boiled it down better, earlier on, exactly what it means for readers who have no experience playing cards of any kind.

Otherwise, “The Counter” is an absorbing read, especially since it’s written by a Mainer who survived the gambling life to tell the story.

“The Counter” is available at Mr. Paperback stores, on Amazon.com or directly from Wooden Pagoda Press, 1056 Green Acres Rd. Suite 102-132, Eugene, OR 97408. 1-888-281-5170. The author’s Web site is: www.kevinblackwood.com. He also can be contacted via e-mail at kevin@kevinblackwood.com.

Doggy treats

FOR THE LOVE OF DOGS: E-Z COOKBOOK, by Britt Hulbert and Marilyn Ryan Hulbert, illustrated by Mike Duffy, Jekyll & Hyde Press, Bar Harbor, 2002, 76 pages.

Anyone who’s been to Bar Harbor will have passed by, and maybe shopped at Jekyll & Hyde on Main Street tucked in between Christmas Spirit and Ben & Bill’s Chocolate Emporium. They also may have seen a dog hanging out at the long-time clothing and jewelry store, an institution in town.

Sierra, an Australian cattle dog, is among the pooches that served as inspiration for “For the Love of Dogs: E-Z Cookbook” written by Britt Hulbert and Marilyn Ryan Hulbert. The mother-and-daughter team – along with father Steve – make up the family clan that runs Jekyll & Hyde. Brother Ian is an artist who plays drums in a heavy metal band.

Dog lovers, the Jekyll & Hyde clan has had as many as 10 dogs at one time. Currently the family has four canines, including Sierra, two cairn terriers, Lady and Banjo, and an Akita named Kairu. It was Poco, a pound puppie who lived to 19, who prompted Britt Hulbert and Marilyn Ryan Hulbert to write a cookbook for dogs.

Like many dog owners, the Hulberts had been told to feed only “dog food” to their pets. Table scraps, of course, were taboo.

At the age of 10, Poco developed arthritis and digestive disorders. The fluffy white pooch was treated with antibiotics and arthritis medicine. The latter had an adverse effect on Poco, who lost all color in his skin, gums and tongue. Iron and vitamin therapy helped restore the dog’s health, but he turned his nose up at all canned dog food henceforth.

To get Poco to eat, the Hulberts started feeding him “real food” such as whole-wheat spaghetti, couscous, turkey, chicken and oatmeal.

“He ate!” they relate. “His color returned to normal, his fur became softer and shinier than ever, and the playful spirit was back in his personality. People would stop on the street and ask how old the ‘puppy’ was. A transformation had taken place.”

In “For the Love of Dogs: E-Z Cookbook,” the Hulberts offer “Poco’s Spaghetti” and many other recipes that have proved popular and healthy for their mutts. They include a shopping list of fruit, grains, vegetables and protein foods to improve your dog’s diet. There are tips on treats, bones, drinking water and road trips.

The book is well designed with Mike Duffy’s delightful illustrations of the Jekyll & Hyde dog tribe.

In the introduction, the Hulberts do caution their book is not intended as a substitute for professional advice from a veterinarian.

“For the Love of Dogs: E-Z Cookbook” can be purchased at Jekyll & Hyde, Sherman’s Book & Stationary Shop in Bar Harbor, Mr. Paperback in Ellsworth and Borders Books & Music in Bangor. Visit the Web site: www.forthelovedogsbook.com.

The family dog

THAT DOG, by Jane Weinberger, Windswept House Publishers, Mount Desert, 2002, 48 pages, $8.

What goes on in a dog’s mind is anyone’s guess, but children’s book author Jane Weinberger has had fun creating a mutt, full of character, who takes action when he’s left out, whether it’s a vacation at the seashore, Halloween parade or dancing the bunny hop.

Reminiscent of Paddington the bear, Plymton, or “That dog” as he’s often referred to, is a stoutish, mischievious hound who is very loveable but always managing to get himself in a pickle. Like the time he scarfed down a neighbor’s Thanksgiving Day pheasant or jumped out the garage window when his family went on vacation without him.

Plymton belongs to the Hathaways, who have three girls and three boys. He escorts John, Joel, Jerry, Jane, Jean and Judy to school but doesn’t venture inside for fear of prim Miss Primrose whacking him on the head with a ruler. He does manage to sneak into the school gym to join in doing the bunny hop with the children.

Jane Weinberger, founder of Windswept House Publishers and wife of former U.S. Defense Secretary Casper Weinberger, has a “very active” golden retriever and perhaps its exploits or shenanigans of other dogs before it provided inspiration for “That Dog.” “Cory the Cormorant” and “Mrs. Witherspoon’s Eagles” are among her other books.

East Orland illustrator Pam DeVito has created fine drawings that do much to bring alive the character of Plymton and his adventures. “That Dog” will give pleasure to children especially those who have a mutt with a mind of its own in their household.

“That Dog” can be ordered directly from Windswept House Publishers, P.O. Box 159, Mount Desert, ME. O4660. 244-7149 or janedee@acadia.net.