New Books by New York Tech Alumni

New York Tech alumni have recently published a slew of new books, covering everything from a care manual for combat sports athletes and a fictional story of battle to a memoir of mingling with celebrities and a musical children’s book teaching about the Black men and women whose inventions changed everyday life.

Loren E. Brereton’s (B.S. ’84) children’s book Other Famous African Americans is the product of a song she created to help her elementary school students learn about Black History Month. Set to the tune of “Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer,” young readers will learn about Black men and women who have created objects we use daily, like Alfred Cralle (the ice cream scoop) and John Lee Love (the hand-cranked pencil sharpener).

Ohio’s Brooke Skylar Richardson made headlines in 2017 when she was accused of murdering her newborn daughter, Annabelle, in her family home’s backyard. Sonia Chopra (M.A. ’95) was the only reporter who spoke to Richardson and sought to uncover the truth—that the teen’s eating disorder triggered a stillborn birth, and she did not commit a crime. Chopra chronicles the true story of this gripping criminal case in Saving Skylar: The Brooke Skylar Richardson Case.

In The Battle at Brooksville Hospital, Dana Ford’s (B.A. ’10) character Big Jim Dunning, a rough and burly biker, returns home from a road trip only to find his world has been turned upside down by the sudden hospitalization of the heart and soul of his family, his father Pop Dunning. In this novel, Big Jim must learn to combat, alongside a few new friends, a mysterious disease and the spiritual forces at work around him in a battle far more intense than anything he’s had to fight before.

In Act Naturally: The Beatles on Film, music journalist Steve Matteo (B.F.A. ’89) follows the origins, filming, and fan reception of the Beatles’ theatrical film releases throughout the band’s storied career. The comprehensive account of an underappreciated part of the Beatles’ creative output explores the movies’ production processes, home video releases, and soundtracks, as well as the parallel of the film releases during a period of unprecedented artistic and commercial innovation in British and world cinema.

Sylvia Nagginda (M.A. ’89), queen consort of the Kingdom of Buganda, a Bantu kingdom within Uganda, published her autobiography The Nnaabagereka of Buganda Queen Sylvia Nagginda Luswata. Filled with secrets revealed for the first time, the tell-all details her efforts to maintain the status quo of being a traditional wife while playing an active role in shaping her community—a kingdom on the rise among crumbling African monarchies.

Robin Pandey (M.B.A. ’03), also known by his spiritual name Moksha Mukti, invites readers to discover the god in themselves in his book Mirror. While seeking spiritual enlightenment, Pandey realized the five senses determine one’s impression of who they are, which is interpreted by their mirror image. But, he notes, if there is no interpretation by the mind; then there are possibilities for one to see who they really are—achieving consciousness, or the “quantum plexus.”

After 40 years as a motion picture and television producer, Maximilian Simcovitch’s (B.F.A. ’66) My Life with the Stars chronicles his moments of hobnobbing with world-famous names from musical acts like the Beatles and Frank Sinatra to cinema stars like Clint Eastwood and Bette Davis. The memoir recounts his behind-the-scenes moments with the stars who, when the cameras are off, he says are just as human as anyone else.

Father-daughter duo Gerard Varlotta (D.O. ’83) and Caroline Varlotta (D.O. ’20) penned Association of Ringside Physician’s Manual of Combat Sports Medicine to create a comprehensive manual for competent care of the combat sports athlete. This reference guide is an accumulation of the knowledge and experience of physicians with expertise relevant to the health and safety of combat sports participants and is meant to provide a basis for healthcare providers and sports officials to further their learning to care for combat athletes.

In her book Human Specialization in Design and Technology: The Current Wave for Learning, Culture, Industry, and Beyond, Patricia A. Young, Ph.D. (B.F.A. ’85) explores emerging trends in learning and training and the trajectory of instructional design and technologies toward innovations more specific to human needs and conditions. In her book, Young analyzes evidence from current academic research and the press, offers real-world demonstrations for scholars and graduate students of educational technology, instructional design, and business development; insights into the future of professors, public schools, equity and access, extended technologies, and open educational resources; and concrete solutions.