Joel Berg will be at Deep Vellum Books for February 19th to speak about his newest book, America, We Need to Talk: A Self-Help Book for the Nation.  

Joel is the head of the national organization Hunger Free America, which is based in NYC, and he is a frequent talking head in the media on that subject. He is a former Clinton advisor having spent 8 years at the USDA, and wrote a previous book on hunger called All You Can Eat. 

In the new book, America, We Need to Talk: A Self-Help Book for the Nation, Joel makes a case for how we must both stop blaming the nation’s problems solely on “the politicians” or “the system” and take personal responsibility to solve them. Written as both a hilarious parody of relationship and self-help books and a deadly serious analysis of the nation's political and economic dysfunction, the book dissects how Donald Trump and other Republicans won over white, working-class voters, and includes a concrete plan to win them back, and well as a broader roadmap for reducing poverty, bolstering the middle class, and powering an overall progressive resurgence.

PRAISE FOR AMERICA, WE NEED TO TALK by Joel Berg:

“It is both important and entertaining. We need both—I've never seen the political world so sad, so foolish. So dangerous. This book will certainly help.“ —Toni Morrison

“Joel Berg has done it again with another book to challenge policy makers and Americans to think boldly and creatively about how to solve some of the biggest issues facing our nation. Joel won’t rest until we end hunger and poverty once and for all. And, quite frankly, we need more people like him.” —Congressman Jim McGovern (D-MA)

“In AMERCA WE NEED TO TALK: A SELF HELP BOOK FOR THE NATION, Joel Berg combines wit, dogged research, and insight based on decades of on-the-ground experience to drill down deeply on issues vital to all Americans.  His call for more civility in our modern public discourse, as well as his proposalsfor wholesale social change based on centristpolicies and mainstream values, deserve particular attention.  While we may not concur on all his critiques and solutions, we surely should agree that the issues he raises demand wide-spread consideration and debate.” —Dan Glickman, former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and U.S. Congressman

“A timely take-no-prisoners argument for sane and humane policies by the master truth-teller, Joel Berg.  Been wondering how we can really make America great again? Read this book.” —Tom Colicchio, chef, TV judge, activist

“Fearless and compulsively readable,   America, We Need to Talk will make you laugh, think and snort coffee through your nose. Joel Berg is that irascible uncle who speaks the unmentionable truth at family dinners. You may squirm, but secretly you’re glad he’s there.”  —Lori Silverbush filmmaker, activist