“Bring One Home” Book Release Event to be held at Bessemer Public Library

Thomas L. Pelissero is excited to announce the official release of his first book, Bring One Home: A Memoir of Boyhood, Basketball, and Hometown Spirit, with a special fundraising event hosted by the Bessemer Public Library at the Bessemer City Hall Auditorium.

When:
Saturday, November 1
Refreshments: 9:30 a.m., Presentation: 10 a.m.

Where:           
Bessemer City Hall auditorium
411 S Sophie St, Bessemer, MI

“Launching my book about life in Bessemer in the 1960s at the Bessemer Public Library is deeply meaningful to me — like returning the story to where it began,” said Pelissero. 

The free, public event will feature a Q&A session along with book sales and signing, offering attendees an opportunity to meet the author and learn more about the history behind the story. All proceeds from books sold at the event via cash or check will be donated back to the library to support its literacy programs.

Pelissero, who grew up in Bessemer and currently resides in Erwin Township, was inspired to write the book after flipping through his old scrapbook and seeing a newspaper clipping featuring the Bessemer Speedboys cutting down the net after ending their prolonged losing streak. As he was remembering that night and those wonderful memories, the historian in him asked, “What was the root cause of the Speedboys long losing streak?”

“I started asking questions of boys who were on that team back in the 1960’s, and the more I asked questions, the more intriguing the story,” said Pelissero. “This led to eight years of investigating and writing about Bessemer.”

Pelissero hopes readers will leave with a deep sense of nostalgia about life in the 1960’s and identify with the characters and themes within.