Max Brallier ’05, Can You Survive the Zombie Apocalypse? (Simon & Schuster, 2011)

This is Max Brallier’s fifth book—and his first novel. Although it is written in the style of the “choose your own adventure” children’s book series that was popular in the 1980s and ’90s, his book is definitely for adults, as it contains various adult themes. The book starts with the 25-year-old protagonist trying to choose how best to escape from a zombie hoard that is descending upon New York City. The reader turns to different pages in the book depending on the way he or she wants the story to go.

A video game designer/scripter as well as an author, Brallier works in the advertising and promotion department at St. Martin’s Press in New York City.

David Kammerer ’84, Pacific Tinge (Jazz Hang Records, 2010)

Kammerer is a cofounder of Crosscurrent, a world improv ensemble composed of faculty from Brigham Young University–Hawaii Campus. The group, which was founded in 2009, released this debut CD in December 2010. Kammerer contributed three original compositions and drew on his doctoral research to produce a medley entitled “Royal Tongan Jam.” The CD features two traditional Tongan songs reimagined in blues shuffle and merengue styles. Other tracks on the CD fuse contemporary jazz and Afro-Caribbean styles with Hawaiian chant, Tahitian drumming, and Samoan traditional music. The CD is a labor of love for Kammerer and his fellow faculty members. Proceeds from the CD will go into a “perpetual recording fund” that has been established to help students at BYU-Hawaii have access to professional recording facilities that they would otherwise have to pay for themselves.

In addition to being a musician, Kammerer is the chair of the Department of Fine Arts and Music in the College of Language, Culture, and Arts at BYU-Hawaii.

Stuart Manning ’91, It’s Not Magic, It’s Logic (Mackenzie Ryan Publishing, 2010)

Manning created this step-by-step guide through the sales process to assist both longtime sales professionals and those just getting started. He outlines simple methods and techniques that are intended to energize and boost the confidence of every salesperson.

Manning is a sales management professional who has nearly 20 years of experience with leading brands in corporate America. He began his career in sales at an advertising agency, became the managing partner of a large insurance brokerage firm, and has held key management and sales positions with two companies. He lives in Tampa, Florida.

Chieli Minucci ’81, Without You (Chielimusic, 2010)

Chieli Minucci’s newest release is a diverse collection of jazz-fusion, Latin rhythms, and the guitar work that Minucci and his band, Special EFX, is known for. The double CD set includes new work and remakes of favorites; a DVD of the band’s live concert at the Java Jazz Festival in Jakarta, Indonesia; a booklet chronicling the history of the group; and stories and photos from the road.

Minucci stays busy , dividing his time between performing in the jazz and pop music world and composing for television, film, and theater. He lives and works in New York City.

Maureen O’Brien ’82,The Other Cradling (Finishing Line Press, 2011)

This poetry chapbook begins with O’Brien’s reflections on the murder of two young lovers in rural New Mexico and the effect of the crime on the mothers of the victims. Nature and the joys and sorrows of motherhood are major themes throughout the book.

O’Brien’s short stories and poems have appeared in several reviews and anthologies. She lives in Connecticut and teaches at the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts.

Richard Pugh ’65, The Greatest Leap of Your Life: Simple Yet Difficult (Xulon Press, 2010)

The author has described this book as a “common layman’s attempt to describe Christianity in a simple, understandable way.” Pugh worked in the health care field for 40 years, serving the last 30 as a hospital CEO. He began writing his “Christian primer” upon his retirement.

A native of upstate New York, Pugh and his wife live in Woodbury, Connecticut. The couple has three grown children.

Robin Berman Rosenberg ’96, Brookie Cookie Bookie (CreateSpace, 2011)

This book is geared toward and illustrated by very young children. Among the illustrators is the author’s daughter, Brooke. The book focuses on diversity and explains the concept to young children by showing them that even though they may like different things, they are still the same as other children in many ways. The author intended the book to be a discussion starter that might help head off future bullying behaviors.

Brookie Cookie Bookie is Rosenberg’s first book, and she and her family live on Long Island in New York.

Ellen Wilber ’92, Sing You Home (Simon and Schuster, 2011)

Wilber collaborated with bestselling author Jodi Picoult on a CD that will be packaged with Picoult’s 18th novel, Sing You Home, released March 2011. Wilber performed and composed the music for the CD, which contains 10 songs; Picoult wrote the lyrics. She and Picoult have teamed up in the past, writing five children’s musicals and many individual songs together.

Wilber is a teacher and musician. She is a member of the Cardigan Mountain Tradition, a bluegrass band, and lives in New Hampshire.

Kinsley Wood ’89, Beneath the Surface (Kinsley Wood, 2010)

This novel also features an 11-song soundtrack, written and sung by the author. The story follows the journey of several characters from the Rocky Mountain ski town of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, to Skaneateles, New York. A preview of the novel and music is available on the author’s website.