Obvious Adams: Take a look inside Don Draper’s desk, and amongst the fresh dress shirts, secret box of Dick Whitman paraphernalia and Lucky Strikes, you’ll probably find a copy of Obvious Adams. Published in 1916, The New York Times once wrote, “The young man who is going to seek his fortune in the advertising business should have Obvious Adams for a handbook. Indeed, any young man who is going to seek his fortune in anything might be aided by the common sense and business acumen displayed in this little volume.”

Ogilvy on Advertising & Confessions of an Ad Man: Like Bill Bernbach, David Ogilvy is an advertising pioneer who some consider to be “The Father of Advertising”. Born in England in 1911, David Ogilvy emigrated to the United States in 1938. In 1949, after working several jobs, one of which was for George Gallup (of Gallup Poll fame), David Ogilvy started his own advertising agency called Ogilvy & Mather. With no prior advertising experience, Ogilvy & Mather initially struggled to sign clients. However, they would go on to become a world renowned, international agency creating ads for brands such as Schweppes, Rolls-Royce and Dove, among others. Many of the principles documented in his books continue to be relevant and David Ogilvy’s eponymous ad agency continues to operate today.