A Throttled Peacock
Collection of Essays
DeGolyer Library, SMU Dallas, Texas
In the mode of such humorists Bill Bryson and David Sedaris, Smith’s essays take a droll and ironic look at the antics of Europeans at home and Americans abroad in this off-beat memoir that gently mocks both traveler and host. In an Oxford University lecture hall, a local mayor wearing a flamboyant ceremonial necklace sets off Smith’s wry meditation on the English love of tradition; in Geneva he learns that a companion with whom you travel 24/7 can be your best friend and your worst enemy; in an ancient French village he learns that pride can lead to hubris when he and his wife introduce multi-national tourists to Texas chili. With an underlying theme of misperception and the surprise of upended expectations, these essays form a singular vision that entertains even as they slyly instruct. As one reader reports, One glory lies in experiencing a deepening emotional and intellectual perspective as both narrator and reader discover more about the people and places. This shifting perception keeps the tales dynamic, almost like detective stories that present a mystery that becomes ever more complex before we reach a resolution.
Praise & Reviews
“Americans have reputations for boorishness and complaining while visiting foreign countries. Yet Europeans often can be hidebound and even vindictive when confronted with our relaxed attitudes toward food, tradition and the “cultural context” of how things are supposed to be done. Dallas writer C.W. Smith pleasantly skewers both sides in this entertaining collection of 12 essays drawn from travels to several countries. In one essay, a cafe owner is distressed and disgusted after an American tourist cuts a piece of brie improperly, showing disrespect to the cheese.”
— Dallas Morning News
"C. W. Smith.... takes pains to point out that A Throttled Peacock is not a travel guide. He 'sought rather to record the psychological, emotional or intellectual shifts that have come from being estranged from [his] usual life…..' With a (mostly) pseudo-curmudgeonly humor, Smith muses on a wide range of subjects. He learns that 'all manners are local' when a French chef is insulted by their brie-carving skills..... The sometimes anxiety-inducing necessity of trusting strangers in an unfamiliar place where you don’t speak the language inspires 'The Brotherhood of the Backpack' and Smith discovers that 'what we thought were our instincts about other people or a situation were feelings that depended upon an elaborate system of coded signals derived purely from a cultural context.'.... Smith’s imagery is richly evocative. On a wintry day in Geneva 'the sun is a pearl button behind a gauze of high cirrus; the wind sweeps away its pale white light.' And at sunset in Oxford: '[T]he stone had caught the yellow light and held it. Spiced-mustard light, dusty dusky-yellow, wine-yellow, apple-yellow light thick as warm candle wax.' A Throttled Peacock is a combination of the prosaic and the profound, of droll humor and thought-provoking observation. I recommend it for travelers planning to strike out across the globe on summer vacations and for all Texans abroad." - Michelle Newby Lone Star Literary Life
"Smith’s experiences range from his description in the book’s opening sentence of wanting to kill his wife (When your only friend becomes your worst enemy … ) to memories of watching a young con-woman weasel money out of her marks in a town square. All-told, there are 12 essays inspired by the six-month trip, written with a confident humor and humble self-deprecation that keeps the pages turning." White Rock Lake Weekly
"Americans have reputations for boorishness and complaining while visiting foreign countries. Yet Europeans often can be hidebound and even vindictive when confronted with our relaxed attitudes toward food, tradition and the 'cultural context' of how things are supposed to be done. Dallas writer C.W. Smith pleasantly skewers both sides in this entertaining collection of12 essays drawn from travels to several countries." Dallas Morning News