The Peacock Manifesto

by Stuart David

Novel "They call me Peacock. Why? The tattoo. I wear it on my shoulder. I had it done in my teens, in admiration of the bird. I still admire the bird today. I admire the way it looks. I admire the way it struts. I admire the way it preens. And did it hurt? Did it fuck." Come and meet Peacock Johnson, and ride with him on the craziest journey of your life as you travel across America in search of his ultimate the hit record, the fame, the fortune. It's so close he can almost smell it. But a word of warning, don't fuck with Glasgow's own Rhinestone Cowboy, because nothing is going to stand in his way. Not the nagging of his mad missus, Bev, nor the weird antics of his Yanky side-kick, Evil Bob, not even you. As Peacock careers from one crisis to another, always clutching his masterpiece demo tape close by his side, his aspirations and plans spiral out of control in a frenzy of hilarity, disaster, sadness and dejection. Yet, he always grasps onto that glimmer of hope - after all, this is America, the land of dreams, where anything is possible...or is it? The Peacock Manifesto is probably the best black-comedy you'll read this year, a superbly realised follow-up to the critically acclaimed and much-loved debut- Nalda Said. It weaves farce with danger, splicing sensitive undercurrents with brutal reality, sucking the reader into Peacock's well-dressed, badly advised and always utterly compulsive world.

Paperback

Published January 1, 2001

About the author

Stuart David is the co-founder of the bands Belle & Sebastian, and Looper. He has published two novels, "Nalda Said" and "The Peacock Manifesto".

Reviews

[Li]

So much fun, especially since I was looking for a Scottish novel with a modern voice. Unfortunately, the main character's wife is painted with such gross disdain, I found it more and more distracting as the book went on. Like yeah it's a laugh, Peacock's wife is stupid trash and he hates her, but it's not a particularly interesting angle and detracted from the overall result.

[Jon Lewis]

Raucous!

Fast paced romp across the USA with an hilarious threesome. Will definitely read some more Peacock adventures. Thank you Stuart.

[M]

I was looking to read something light and distracting, but this is definitely not required reading by any standard. Fan of B&S's early stuff, that's how I ended up here.

[Matt]

This is a rawer, younger Peacock than the version in Peacock's Alibi. Less Bertie Wooster, and more.... I can't think who, really, but I certainly don't remember Wodehouse using the word 'cunt' quite this much. The characters are great fun and David shows us just enough to flesh them out beyond the caricatures they basically are. Very funny.

[juju]

another gem from the other side of the valuable coin that is stuart david. i laughed so hard when reading it my roommate at the time, now my husband, who was in the other end of the house had to see if i was ok. brilliant.

[Ben]

Great trippp

A right old rollicking trip of misadventures. Loved the fast paced style. Great imagination! For me elements of fear and loathing in there. Definately recommend for anyone who wants a funny, chaotic but well written book about an alternative road trip.

[Dan]

V funny. Peacock is an excellent character