My Friend Maigret (Inspector Maigret Mysteries) [Paperback]

Georges Simenon (Author), Nigel Ryan (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 18, 2007 | Series: Inspector Maigret Mysteries

Three vintage Maigret novels by legendary mystery author Georges Simenon

One of the world 's most successful crime writers, Georges Simenon has thrilled mystery lovers since 1931 with his matchless creation Inspector Maigret. In My Friend Maigret, Inspector Maigret investigates the murder of a small- time crook on a Mediterranean island. Told in Simenon's spare, unsentimental prose, Inspector Cadaver is a haunting exploration of provincial hypocrisy and snobbery, in which Maigret encounters a rival sleuth from his past. In Maigret and the Man on the Boulevard, Simenon's tenacious detective pieces together the life of a man who for three years lived a secret life-until he is found stabbed to death in an alleyway.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"These Maigret books are as timeless as Paris itself."
-The Washington Post

"Maigret ranks with Holmes and Poirot in the pantheon of fictional detective immortals."
-People

"Simenon created one of the great moral detectives . . . a master of the slow unfolding of the criminal mind."
-John Mortimer

"A writer who, more than any other crime novelist, combined a high literary reputation with popular appeal."
-P. D. James

"Simenon created some of the most enduring and compelling works of the twentieth century."
-Iain Pears

About the Author

Georges Simenon (1903–1989) began work as a reporter for a local newspaper at the age of sixteen, and at nineteen he moved to Paris to embark on a career as a novelist. He went on to write seventy-five Maigret novels and twenty-eight Maigret short stories.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 195 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics); Tra edition (December 18, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0143112848
• ISBN-13: 978-0143112846
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 4.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #183,156 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Maigret and the Observer Effect, January 10, 2008

By 

Leonard Fleisig "Len" (Washington, D.C.) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: My Friend Maigret (Inspector Maigret Mysteries) (Paperback)

As I understand it the term "observer effect" stands for the proposition that the act of observing changes the act of the person or thing being observed. In Georges Simenon's "My Friend Maigret" we get a story in which "observer effect" is fully in play. The result is another good Simenon "Maigret" mystery.

"My Friend Maigret" open with the good Inspector Maigret going about his normal routine in Paris. Much to Maigret's chagrin he finds himself in the company of one Inspector Pyke of Scotland Yard who accepted an invitation from the chief of the Paris police to come to Paris to see the great Maigret at work. As luck would have it Maigret is advised that a murder has been committed in Porquerolles, an island of the coast of Provence in the south of France. This would normally not be of interest to the Paris police but on the night of the murder the victim (a small-time career criminal) had been heard bragging about his good friend Inspector Maigret. So Maigret finds himself getting on a train and ferry, with Inspector Pyke in tow, to the warm and sunny island to conduct an investigation.

The investigation/plot is pretty standard fare for detective mysteries. There is a murder and a small set of potential killers from a wide variety of backgrounds. What sets "My Friend Maigret" apart from the run of the mill story is the exotic location, Simenon's spare but arch writing, and Maigret's ongoing self-consciousness derived from being observed constantly by the quiet British observer.

All in all this was a pretty good story but far from being one of Simenon's best Maigret mysteries. Nonetheless, average Simenon remains a cut above the average for this genre. Fans of Simenon and Maigret should enjoy "My Friend Maigret". However, as someone who gladly prmotes Maigret at every opportunity, I don't think this would be a good introduction for a reader new to the Maigret mysteries. I think Lock 14 (Inspector Maigret Mysteries), Maigret and the Man on the Boulevard (Inspector Maigret), or Inspector Cadaver (Inspector Maigret Mysteries)would make for a better starting point for anyone interested in Maigret. Once Maigret has a chance to grow on you, "My Friend Maigret" will make for an enjoyable read. L.Fleisig

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A classic in a great series, January 25, 2008

By 

Jonathan Willier (Iowa, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: My Friend Maigret (Inspector Maigret Mysteries) (Paperback)

An inspector from Scotland Yard comes to France to observe the police methods of the great detective Maigret as he investigates a crime. As the stoic British policeman follows Maigret around, both men feel awkward because Maigret has no methods, other than his characteristic investigative technique of immersing himself in the atmosphere of the place and in the lives of the persons involved until he knows them so well that he understands how the crime must have happened. This is a classic Maigret.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One of his most pleasant and amusing, April 16, 2009

By 

Grey Wolffe "Zeb Kantrowitz" (North Waltham, MA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: My Friend Maigret (Inspector Maigret Mysteries) (Paperback)

Like all of his Maigret books, Simenon never has his Chief Inspector take himself too seriously. In this novel, we have a very thoughtful and introspective Maigret. While working on routine matters in Paris, Maigret is asked to let an Inspector from Scotland Yard "shadow" him so that the English can learn the 'techniques' of the famous Maigret. The man who comes to watch him is Mr.Pyke (we are never given his first name) who is the epitome of the 'stiff upper lip public school' chap.

When Maigret is called to a small island of the coast of the Riviera, he takes the Englishman with him. There has been a murder on the Island of a man who called himself a 'friend of Maigret'. No one has been allowed to leave the Island so that the murderer has to still be there. In his quiet way of watching and asking 'uninteresting' questions, Maigret is able to root out the killers, and their establish their motive.

As many of Simenon's stories, the mystery itself is there to give Maigret something to do. This is an island that has only two families on it. They are fisherman and have lived this way for centuries. What's really the reason for the story is to give Simenon a chance to explain a culture that will soon disappear. With the coming of war and then the advent of multi-media, this once quiet corner of Europe will become as homogenous as the rest of the world. Desolee.

Zeb Kantrowitz