Singing for Change
February 16, 2026
ISBN-13: 9781950561193
When a mass shooting shatters the lives of a journalist, an NBA star, and an LGBTQ activist who cross paths at an airport, their bond—and their healing—take center stage at an anti-gun music festival organized by Dutch, a reclusive '60s musician determined to turn grief into a rallying cry for change.
REVIEWS
"Singing for Change is more than I expected. While the title and recurring characters, such as Luther, Dutch, and Buster, led me to expect readers would follow Dutch as he got his music career back up and running, the novel offers much more. Gallo brings Dutch and Buster, who appeared in Bardo, into this story, filling it with action, love, and the importance of family. More importantly, it highlights gun violence, LGBTQIA issues, and their impact."
"...Chico writer Emily Gallo (emilygallo.com) has charted the lives of a group of unlikely friends. Many wind up at Dutch Bogart’s former pot farm in Garberville. The reclusive Dutch, a former Sixties musician, lives on song royalties.
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Among the “motley crew” is Buster Fingerpickin’ McCracken, a famed blues musician now in his eighties. When Dutch gets a call from “Playing for Change,” a charitable foundation “trying to spread music for social change around the world,” the opportunity to make a music video along the boardwalk ignites something deep in him, and he’s able to persuade Buster to join him. That’s when Dutch meets audio assistant, Vivienne, a reporter for the Haiti Liberté, and he is smitten.