Fairfield University Downtown Bookstore Plans Meet and Greet with Shelton

Author, Christopher Gallo for his new book,  Fairfield University Downtown Bookstore Plans Meet and Greet with Shelton Author, Christopher Gallo for his new book, Unlikely Champions: A Miracle in Williamsport

FAIRFIELD, CT/OCTOBER 8, 2014 – First time author and Shelton, Conn. resident, Christopher Gallo, will be having a meet and greet and signing of his new book, Unlikely Champions: A Miracle in Williamsport, hosted by the Fairfield University Downtown Bookstore, 1499 Post Road, on Saturday, October , from noon to 3 p.m. 18th

Gallo, a self-proclaimed baseball fanatic celebrates the 25th Anniversary of Trumbull, Conn.’s victory and championship in the 1989 Little League World Series with a home-run of a book, which will appeal to baseball fans of all ages. He peppers the story with first-person reminiscences by players who share life lessons and unforgettable moments. According to Gallo, the book, released on Amazon in August 2014, opens on the first day of practice in July 1989 and takes the reader through the entire tournament that ended 52 days later in Williamsport, Pennsylvania with Trumbull’s victory over Taiwan and a crowd of 40,000 chanting “USA – USA – USA” as the kids from Trumbull circled the field with the Little League World Champions banner. Gallo follows the team as they return home, celebrated champions, are feted at the White House and are featured on “Good Morning America”. “I remember how much pride there was in the State of Connecticut and really all of New England when Trumbull won the Little League World Series in 1989,” said ESPN commentator Chris Berman in his foreword to the book…“I remember watching these youngsters running around the field in their forest green jerseys, celebrating. The joy you saw on their faces is a reminder to everyone that the Little League World Series is still pure. It’s fun. It’s competition. It’s baseball. It’s America. Everything was right with it, and I was proud to be from Connecticut.” Gallo’s story lets the players talk about how this experience changed their lives- from ordinary twelve year-olds to Little League World Champions, and follows them as they grow into adults, who have succeeded in life and in business. This is an American baseball story finally…and finely told.

Gallo explained that besides telling the story of what the team did, how they did it and the end result, the book also recounts many personal vignettes from the players, and more importantly, what they would tell Little Leaguers today. The book concludes with the players sharing their personal stories of how their lives were impacted by this experience and what they have accomplished over the past 25 years. “This book is all about leadership, perseverance and mostly about kids having fun playing baseball,” Gallo added. Gallo started writing Unlikely Champions in August of 2010. “Though I’m not talented at playing the game, I love to tell baseball stories,” he said. “And telling stories is how we pass on the legacy of the game. The late Bart Giamatti often claimed that ‘baseball stories were at the heart of the appeal of our game.’ I love telling baseball stories and this story had to be told”. “The passion for baseball has never left me. If I pass a group of kids playing, I stop to watch. I love to talk to other baseball fans about baseball, no matter where I am. I prefer sitting in the bleachers because the real fans hang out in the bleachers. When the National Anthem is sung, I always say “Play Ball” when it’s over. What else can you say?”

Gallo said that he hopes the parents of Little Leaguers read this book and learn the simple lesson about what Little League baseball is all about. “It’s not about winning at all costs. It is not about the fame that comes from winning an important game with a world-wide audience watching,” Gallo said. “It is about playing the game and having fun, dreaming, working hard to make dreams come true, learning to trust your teammates and  icking up your teammate when he or she is having a bad day…It is also about the kids learning to trust the adults who teach them the game.”