{"product_id":"a-footman-for-the-peacock-paperback","title":"A Footman for the Peacock - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eRachel Ferguson\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe peacock displayed himself and paraded the lawn, sometimes pausing to look up at the sky.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWaiting? Listening? Guiding. No. \u003c\/em\u003eSignalling.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eControversial when first published in the early days of World War II, due to its treatment of a loathsome upper-crust family dodging wartime responsibility, \u003cem\u003eA Footman for the Peacock\u003c\/em\u003e can now be enjoyed as a scathing satire of class abuses, a comic masterpiece falling somewhere between Barbara Pym and Monty Python.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eSir Edmund and Lady Evelyn Roundelay live surrounded by a menagerie of relations and retainers. The Roundelays' history of callous cruelty is literally etched on a window of the servants' quarters with the words \"Heryn I dye, Thomas Picocke. 1792\". Sir Edmund reflects cheerfully on the running footmen who have 'died off like flies' in the family's service.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eBut now--amidst digressions on everything from family history and servant woes to the villagers' linguistic peculiarities and a song immortalizing the footman's plight--war threatens the Roundelays' smug superiority. What's more, it appears that the estate's peacock is a reincarnation of Thomas Picocke, and may be aiding the Nazi cause ... By turns giddy and incisive, hilarious and heartbreaking, \u003cem\u003eA Footman for the Peacock\u003c\/em\u003e is Rachel Ferguson at her very best. This new edition features an introduction by Elizabeth Crawford.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e'The Roundelays are people to live with and laugh at and love' \u003cem\u003ePunch\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 220\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.46 x 7.81 x 5.06 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e October 03, 2016\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42712680398911,"sku":"9781911413714","price":20.71,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0105\/8226\/1823\/files\/6685bab877c73b40e53c83aee04f6512.webp?v=1765062253","url":"https:\/\/dhlswag.com\/products\/a-footman-for-the-peacock-paperback","provider":"BBB","version":"1.0","type":"link"}