Double Down

"This first nonfiction book by Frederick Barthelme, author of Bob the Gambler, and his brother and colleague Steven is both a story of family feeling and a testimony to the risky allure of casinos."--BOOK JACKET. "Within a year and a half, the authors had lost both of their parents, less than a decade after their brother Donald died. What followed was a several-year escapade during which the two brothers lost close to a quarter million dollars in the gambling boats off the Mississippi coast. Then, in a bizarre twist, they were charged with violating state gambling laws, fingerprinted, and thrown into the surreal world of felony prosecution. For two years these widely publicized charges hung over their heads, shadowing their every step, until, in August of 1999, the charges were finally dismissed."--BOOK JACKET. "Double Down is the story of how Frederick and Steven Barthelme got into this predicament. It is also a reflection on the pull and power of illusions, the way they work on us when we are not vigilant."--BOOK JACKET.

Beyond its central premise, the book can be read through the connected lenses of Mental Health. Those themes offer useful points of attention as the characters, ideas, or world develop, especially where the book complicates the expectations of its primary category.