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Recent Professional Highlights

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Susan Johnston Taylor

Susan Johnston Taylor published nonfiction articles in the June and July issues of Highlights for Children. For both issues, she profiled kids giving back to their communities in creative ways. Associated website

Amy Waters Yarsinske Amy Waters Yarsinske

Several years in the making, Amy Waters Yarsinske has a new book, ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA: A HISTORY OF THE LAND OF THE SKY (Fonthill Media, 352 pp.). Beloved Asheville author and historian Lou Harshaw once observed that Asheville has always been a place apart. "It is not really a southern city, but always of the South. Its differences make for a fascinating whole. In this time, more than two hundred years after the first Europeans came over the eastern escarpment of the Blue Ridge to take up land and make new homes, the concern for the future has never been greater. Asheville," she opined, "is absorbing new human values, new technology. There are new ways in which to live, and to relate to one another. In later years," she continued, "the decades over the turn of this century will be very important in Asheville history - a time of seeking control of destiny." As she so aptly noted, looking back at Asheville's rich history can enrich what lies ahead -- and it should. Amy Waters Yarsinske is the author of several best-selling, award-winning nonfiction books, notably An American in the Basement: The Betrayal of Captain Scott Speicher and the Cover-up of His Death, which won the Next Generation Indie Book Award for General Non-fiction in 2014. To those who know this prolific author and Renaissance woman, it’s no surprise that that she became a writer. Amy’s drive to document and investigate history-shaping stories and people has already led to publication of over 85 nonfiction books, most of them spotlighting current affairs, the military, history and the environment. Amy graduated from Randolph-Macon Woman’s College in Lynchburg, Virginia, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts in English and Economics, and the University of Virginia School of Architecture, where she earned her Master of Planning and was a DuPont Fellow and Lawn/Range resident. She also holds numerous graduate certificates, including those earned from the CIVIC Leadership Institute and the Joint Forces Staff College, both headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia. Amy serves on the national board of directors of Honor-Release-Return, Inc., and is a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA), Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE), Authors Guild, the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association (NCLHA), and the Western North Carolina Historical Association (WNCHA). Associated website

Julie Vick

Julie Vick's humorous advice book for introverted parents Babies Don't Make Small Talk (So Why Should I?) comes out from Countryman Press in August 2021. With a mix of personal anecdotes, satire, and even some actual advice for surviving the years from pregnancy through preschool, this book shares hard-earned wisdom from the trenches, such as tests to prepare for parenthood (“Set up your laptop on one end of a ping-pong table and set up a ping-pong robot on the other end. Turn on both the robot and your computer and then try to send some work emails”) and advice on ending a playdate that has gone on too long: (“Do whatever it takes to get your toddler to have a meltdown”). Perfect for parents who may not be cherishing every moment of parenthood. Associated website

Brette Sember

Brette Sember is the author of the newly released WWII Battle Trivia for Kids: Fascinating Facts about the Biggest Battles, Invasions, and Victories of World War II, published by Ulysses Press. The fun Q&A format is geared to kids ages 10 and up. Associated website

Beryl Lieff Benderly

Beryl Lieff Benderly's article "Secret Shabes: How the 'Sabbath Delight' HId an Astonishing Archive" in B'nai B'rith magazine won two prizes in the American Jewish Press Association's 40th annual Simon Rockower Awards: second prize for writing about Jewish heritage and Jewish peoplehood in Europe and honorable mention for excellence in feature writing. "This is a sad, moving, and graceful story that pays homage to true visionaries and their heroic acts," the judges wrote. Associated website

Joan Detz

The Boston Globe interviewed Joan Detz (author, How To Write & Give A Speech) for an article on commencement speeches.

Harvey Rachlin

Harvey Rachlin wrote an opinion article for the New York Daily News entitled "A New Good-Cop Routine: Have Police Officers Dole Out Positive Reinforcement Too." The article makes a case that law enforcement should reward good behavior by civilians. Associated website

Jyrki Penttinen

The first phase of 5G (fifth generation of mobile communications system) as described in the respective standards Release 15 changed the philosophy of the mobile networks via its Service Based Architecture, and the latest Release 16 introduces important enhancements increasing the performance further. It is of my great joy to inform about my new publication, 5G Second Phase Explained by Wiley. This book complements the previous 5G Explained presenting up-to-date architecture, network functions, use cases, network planning, security, and other key aspects of the latest version of the 5G system based on the 3GPP Release 16. The depth of the information of the current mobile communication specifications is rather overwhelming, making their interpretation increasingly hard. The 5G technical specifications introduce exceptionally large set of novel aspects, and with such amount of new information, it can be challenging to form a clear view on their relevancy in practical environment. I thus hope this summary serves as useful, compact source of "digested" information for the ones interested in understanding some of the very key aspects of 5G, with relevant references for further exploration. As always, I highly appreciate all your feedback. Associated website

 

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