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A young agency trainee begins his advertising career in London and makes his way to the top over a period of thirty-odd years, though not without myriad struggles and laughs along the way. Hayes hits the ground running in his career (and this debut memoir) with an advertising dilemma. Cautioned never to work with children or animals, he immediately suggests that a television commercial with live penguins would be just the ticket for his new employer's client. Never mind that the penguins' summer plumage needs a paint touch-up during the shoot or that cooling dehydrated birds in a kiddie pool washes off the paint.
Such are the unanticipated obstacles in brand advertising, as are the many cultural peculiarities that Hayes hilariously recounts about his promotions in countries throughout Asia, Russia, Eastern Europe, and Chicago. Each location has a distinct local and professional culture. Hayes manages to navigate each one with a bit of advice from his colleagues, a dose of easygoing humor, and some fast thinking. The author's talents clearly support the snappy prose and smooth storytelling he has gained as an advertising executive. The memoir is also informative and a treasure trove of historical information about international brand advertising in the 1960s through the 1990s. The tale even has a happy, connected ending for the seemingly dedicated bachelor whose somewhat unapologetic and bawdy adventures seem complementary with this creative profession. Fans of Augusten Burroughs, John Hegarty, and other notable advertising memoirists will appreciate Hayes's point of view as he tells his tale with subdued British-flavored wit.
RECOMMENDED by the US Review