Guest Author and Illustrator

Local author and illustrator shared their book with HCES students.
New Book Tells Story of No-Count Dog, An Unlikely Hero.


No Count Dog barks. He barks a lot. It is what he does when he doesn't know what to do.

When a big storm hits and his friend Julie has to go to a shelter, No Count Dog can't go with her. He must stay home as the flood waters rise. He's afraid!

What's a no-count dog to do?

How No-Count Dog survives the flood and becomes a hero is the subject of a new picture book, the first collaboration between author Mary Potter and artist Jennifer Jones Nuckolls, both of Clinton in Hickman County, Kentucky.

Mary, an attorney, mother, grandmother and former elementary school teacher, got the idea for No-Count Dog soon after Hurricane Katrina forced the evacuation of thousands of residents of the Gulf Coast. Some could take their pets. Many could not. It troubled her that many pets were left behind and many pet owners braved the storm to be with their pets.

Jennifer Jones Nuckolls is a graduate of Hickman County High School, Class of 2008. Jennifer has two daughters, Bailey, age three and Gracee, age one. Jennifer attended Western Kentucky University, where she studied journalism. She works as Mary’s legal assistant part time and for the Hickman County Gazette as a writer and photographer part time. Drawing and art took a brief break with the birth of her girls. Now she shares her love of drawing with her children.

No-Count Dog is a story not just for children but for everyone who has a pet, has had a pet, or who has loved and lost a pet. It's a story of courage and heart. It's a story for everyone who believes that everyone counts.

The book retails for $15.95 and can be purchased at Mary’s office on N. Washington Street in Clinton. The book is also available on Amazon.com