A Bird Rock couple will read their new children's book at a La Jolla school on Nov. 17 and collect sock donations.

Robbie and Jess Gallo wrote "Sneakers: The Sock Gremlin," a rhyming picture book for ages 2 to 10 that goes on sale Wednesday, Nov. 4 for online purchase. The public reading starts at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 17 at La Jolla Village Montessori School, 7427 Fay Ave. Attendees are encouraged to bring a pair of socks to donate.

The book follows a friendly gremlin named Sneakers who lives inside a dryer and collects single socks, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported. When a curious boy named Atlas goes searching for his own missing sock, he stumbles into Sneakers' hidden world.

The lead character is named after the Gallos' four-year-old son, Atlas. The idea behind the book predates him, though. Robbie Gallo told the Union-Tribune the couple had joked about the mystery of missing socks long before their son was born, and eventually said, "We should write a book about it."

Over the past two years, they did. It is the couple's first children's book, though both bring creative backgrounds. Robbie is a musician and writer who performs hip-hop under the name B3K and fronts the band Vokab Kompany as Rob Hurt. Jess has worked as a freelance photographer for over a decade.

Robbie handled the writing and told the Union-Tribune the project challenged him to simplify his style for a younger audience. Jess took the lead on visuals. The couple initially sought an illustrator, but after months of outreach and two last-minute cancellations, Jess turned to the AI platform Midjourney to create characters and scenes, then refined them in Adobe Photoshop, the Union-Tribune reported.

The Gallos said the process went well enough that they are considering follow-up books set in the same universe.

For more information or to order a copy, visit sneakersthesockgremlin.com.

Upcoming

  • Wednesday, Nov. 4: "Sneakers: The Sock Gremlin" available for online purchase
  • Tuesday, Nov. 17, 4 p.m.: Public book reading, La Jolla Village Montessori School, 7427 Fay Ave. Attendees encouraged to bring socks to donate