Death of a Nobody

by Georges Simenon

One of the most baffling investigations ever for Maigret on the boulevards of Paris.

A man who is a nobody gets murdered. The very idea haunts the Superintendent. Why would someone shoot the non-descript, 48-year-old, Maurice Tremblet at home as he was changing for bed? He's a cashier at Couvreur et Bellechasse. The shot must have been taken from the drab hotel across the street. Baffling. It takes some time for Maigret to find the answer and understand the details.

It's time for you to enjoy Georges Simenon's greatest creation, the French detective Jules Maigret. Simenon turned the police novel into an art form with his stories which deal as much with human psychology as with criminal investigation.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Crime, Mystery, France, Belgian, Mystery Thriller

58 pages, Paperback

First published August 15, 1946

About the author

Georges Joseph Christian Simenon (1903 – 1989) was a Belgian writer. A prolific author who published nearly 500 novels and numerous short works, Simenon is best known as the creator of the fictional detective Jules Maigret.
Although he never resided in Belgium after 1922, he remained a Belgian citizen throughout his life.

Simenon was one of the most prolific writers of the twentieth century, capable of writing 60 to 80 pages per day. His oeuvre includes nearly 200 novels, over 150 novellas, several autobiographical works, numerous articles, and scores of pulp novels written under more than two dozen pseudonyms. Altogether, about 550 million copies of his works have been printed.

He is best known, however, for his 75 novels and 28 short stories featuring Commissaire Maigret. The first novel in the series, Pietr-le-Letton, appeared in 1931; the last one, Maigret et M. Charles, was published in 1972. The Maigret novels were translated into all major languages and several of them were turned into films and radio plays. Two television series (1960-63 and 1992-93) have been made in Great Britain.

During his "American" period, Simenon reached the height of his creative powers, and several novels of those years were inspired by the context in which they were written (Trois chambres à Manhattan (1946), Maigret à New York (1947), Maigret se fâche (1947)).

Simenon also wrote a large number of "psychological novels", such as La neige était sale (1948) or Le fils (1957), as well as several autobiographical works, in particular Je me souviens (1945), Pedigree (1948), Mémoires intimes (1981).

In 1966, Simenon was given the MWA's highest honor, the Grand Master Award.

In 2005 he was nominated for the title of De Grootste Belg (The Greatest Belgian). In the Flemish version he ended 77th place. In the Walloon version he ended 10th place.

Reviews

[Olga · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maigret is puzzled. An ordinary man, a simple cashier, a family man living a hard, uneventful, boring and absolutely transparent life gets shot in his bedroom in the presence of his wife.
Maigret is certain that a Nobody like Maurice Tremblet was not supposed to be killed.

[Dirk Grobbelaar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Odd little beast this. A short story collection – but with only two stories. One is short, the other shorter. It’s “detective” fiction but it’s a little offbeat to be sure.

I recently visited Paris for the first time and it would have been nice to read this at the time. The city features quite a bit.

I quite enjoyed this as a distraction between bigger books. It even has a bit of a philosophical angle.

Recommended.

[Toby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two short stories that both essentially feature Maigret following a man around Paris, one is dead and one is very much alive and doing exactly what Maigret takes a great pleasure in doing - eating and drinking in a variety of bistros. Very good introduction to the character and the milieu of the series of books, not to mention Simenon's adopted style for these soft psychological investigations of men that he churned out; they follow the pattern of the longer novels but obviously have less depth to them what with being shorter in length. I shall be lending this to anyone who dares ask me why I have over a hundred Simenon books in my library.

[Razvan Banciu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not easy at all to write short stories, as you have to hook your reader and keep him.
But that's not a problem for Mr. Simenon, as he always finds the right twist at the right moment. This one: the lottery ticket...

[Jack Heath · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars. I've heard of a similar case here in Canada. A real one. Not the exact crime but the back story, the reason behind it all. But I can't go too deep without giving it away! Superintendent Jules Maigret is called to a third floor walk-up on Rue des Dames in Paris. Far from the best of places. A nobody has been murdered. Maigret can't believe it. A nice guy, a family man in his late 40s, has been shot while he prepared for bed. The bullet had to have come through an open window from across the street in the Hotel Excelsior, a shabby rooming house that rents by the month, week or day. Maurice Tremblet had five children, the oldest being 17-year-old Francine. It was a noisy household with Madame Tremblet unsuccessfully trying to keep the ensemble in line. They barely made due, even Francine had to contribute a portion of her salary from her shop clerk's job. But when Maigret interviewed Tremblet's employer, a gold lace firm in the Sentier district where he was a cashier, it turned out that he hadn't worked there for seven years. Suddenly interesting. Where was he working? Georges Simenon is such a great writer. You'll enjoy the ride he crafts for us all. (June 2022)

[Debbie Robson · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1996 I visited London and discovered the little Penguin 60s. At a pound each or $1.95 AUD I couldn’t resist them and I have been collecting them ever since. I found this Georges Simenon one at a second hand bookshop recently in Hamilton.
Death of a Nobody actually contains two Simenon stories - Death of a Nobody and The Man in the Street. They are from Maigret’s Christmas originally published in 1981.
I am really beginning to enjoy the Paris of Maigret. In a strange way it is also Modiano’s Paris and I love even a slight mention of the city. I also really enjoy how Maigret operates.
In the title story, Maigret can’t stop telling himself - Nobodies don’t get murdered. The victim was simply sitting in his shirt after having taken off his trousers when he suddenly fell forward - shot by someone in the hotel opposite.
“Nothing had been stolen. There had been no attempt at theft. And it was not a random crime. On the contrary, it must have been carefully prepared, since it had meant taking a room in the hotel opposite and procuring a rifle - probably an air gun.
This could not have been done by just anybody. And it could not have been done to just anybody.”
In the second story The Man in the Street Maigret sets up a recreation of a crime - the stabbing of a man in Porte de Bagatelle. Soon after the inspector begins to shadow a man who was particularly interested in the reconstruction. The reader wonders why Maigret is going to such lengths to follow him:
“In fact, one detail struck Maigret: this exhausting ramble always followed the same course, through the same districts: between the Trinite and Place Clichy, between Place Clichy and Barbes by way of the Rue Caulaincourt, then from Barbes to the Gare du Nord and the Rue La Fayette...”
Two very interesting stories from a prolific crime writer. Recommended. And a marvellous cover.

[Shankar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pocket sized less than 1 hour short novel. Finished it in a flight and then had free time.

This is a very nice story in the Simenon stable. More than the story the expressions and characters themselves were very interesting. Story of Maurice Tremblet and his curious life. I recommend for Simenon fans.

[Daren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two short stories in this Penguin 60s edition. The title story and another called The Man in the Street.

Both set in Paris, written in 1946 and 1939 respectively, and featuring the same cast of police detectives working on cases.

Enjoyable reading, nice descriptions of Paris, intelligent reasoning and well paced stories. Along the lines of any police detective story - Sherlock Holmes and the like.

A good short read.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all) · Rating 5 out of 5]

My copy contains only the title novella. I remember seeing the Bruno Cremer episode of this, though they changed a few details which actually improved the story.
Written in 1946 while the author was in New Brunswick, we have the classic Simenon "fugue" story of a man who leaves his job and lives a double life--or, well, a life and a half, though Maigret somehow counts up to four different and concurrent "lives." An unhappily married father of five is shot dead from the hotel across from his apartment while getting ready for bed. Whom could this poor nebbish's death possibly benefit? As the title states, "They don't go around killing schlemeils."

As usual, Maigret spends his time trying to fit into the victim's skin, itchy as that turns out to be during a hot Paris summer. He's more than a bit resentful that most of his colleagues are on holiday while he swelters at the Quai--which amused me as we know Maigret enjoys toasting himself at his office stove in the winter while others complain of the heat in his room! I guess it's about whether we have a choice in the temperature.

Short and sweet; Simenon can pack the information of a 200 page novel into less than half that, when he chooses.

[Tyas · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was a high-schooler. I picked up this book from an aunt's collection. I tried to read it. Pages went by. I couldn't understand. I couldn't stand it. I stopped reading and put the book back on the shelf. A couple of months later, I returned to it, trying to re-read it. I found myself giving up at exactly the same page where I had stopped reading before. Hahum.

I wonder if my adult self would like the book now?

[amelia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two short stories of Inspector Maigret. The titular one's a traditional detective story that makes a couple limp gestures at profundity. The second, The Man in the Street, is more what I'd hoped for when I imagined 'intelligent detective fiction'. All of 14 pages long, takes a simple, almost mundane investigation and teases a slinky little character piece out of it. I'll revisit Simenon, but perhaps not le commissaire.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great little intro (2 short stories) to Maigret. Lots of lovely Parisian detail and a quiet, understated tone. 1940-50s detective fiction is certainly more gentle than today's violent and hi tech crime fiction, but nonetheless, full of disturbing shadows and psychological realism.

[Bob · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of a disappointment to have gotten caught up in a completist frenzy and procured this without doing my due diligence to realize that both stores here are also in the Maigret Christmas story collection. That said, it’s a fun quick read if you enjoy tales of the inspector. Both stories focus on the single minded tenacity of the character, One in which he endeavors to get to the bottom of a man whose mildly depressingly mundane life would not seem to point to anyone wanting to murder him, the other a story about Maigret being convinced he has the right man and spending several days hunting him down on the street until he caves and returns to his home (why the suspect doesn’t choose to out run maigret at any point someone eluded me). The first and longer of the two stories was the better in my opinion, but again, consider buying the larger collection that also contains these instead.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two short detective stories, both of which I enjoyed.

The first is about a murdered "nobody" - an ordinary man going about an ordinary life. Inspector Maigret cannot make sense of it. But perhaps the nobody was somebody after all...

The second is the account of a "chase" that is more of a five-day bar-hop. Maigret identifies a man who seems to know something about a recent murder, but he has no reason to arrest him and he cannot force him to talk. So he simply follows the man, quite openly, for days, while the man seems intent on keeping him away from his home.

Both stories are good reading for fans of thoughtful detective stories.

[Coenraad · Rating 5 out of 5]

These two short stories tell of investigations by the famous Maigret and follow him through the streets of Paris, unravelling mysteries by delving into the lives of victims and perpetrators. One can see how Simenon had a strong influence on the development of the detective novel of the twentieth and twenty-first century.

Simenon se beroemde speurder Maigret los in hierdie boekie twee sake op. Dit is maar 'n klein lusmakertjie vir die groot aantal verhale wat Simenon nagelaat het - en 'n aanduiding van sy groot invloed op speurverhale, wat in ons tyd steeds merkbaar is.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book. It is very short with only 2 stories by Georges Simenon but they are very entertaining. This edition was published to commemorate Penguin's 60th Anniversary and it's really small so it perfect to put in your handbag to read when on the road. I liked the stories they were entertaining with good solutions to the murder mysteries, I enjoyed the interactions between the detective team and the unique way Inspector Maigret has of solving the problems. I recommend this book as a good way to pass time.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

A tiny little book with just 2 short stories in extremely small print. Both stories are very good but I'm not quite sure why the publishers would print books of this size. I felt quite dissatisfied that I finished it so quickly.

[Pierre-emmanuel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Plus une nouvelle, ce n'est pas par la complexité de son enquête que se distingue ce roman, mais, comme souvent avec les Maigret, par la galerie de personnages et la description d'un milieu parisien. Agréable à lire pour se détendre.

[Shani · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always Maigret and the old-time Parisian setting is an added bonus.

[Jeremy Muller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nobodies don't get murdered.... thought provoking crime fiction that made me an instant fan. Inspector Maigret is as excellent a character as you would find in the world of detective fiction.

[Mx Józef · Rating 5 out of 5]

a more relatable and humane sherlock holmes

[Roy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining read, but certainly not flatly so.

[Lise · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know the writing of Georges Simenon because I don't particularly like police novels. However, his writing is something of poetic and philosophical. I really enjoyed the two short stories even tho the answers were so simple. What matters is the path to the truth.

"What kind of crime could have been committed in a house like this, inhabited by nobodies, who are usually decent people? A drama of love and jealousy? Even for that the setting was not right."

[Paul Barnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

[Penguin Books] (1995). SB. 58 Pages. Purchased from The British Heart Foundation.

Penguin have done a wonderful job, of late, bringing oodles of Simenon material to light in English translation.

Here we have two fairly standard Maigret pieces, rendered in ridiculously small type - in contrast with the aforementioned.

“Death of Nobody” (15/08/1946) [6/10]
“The Man in the Street” (1939) [5/10]

[luis · Rating 3 out of 5]

sinceramente muy meh, no está mal si estás aprendiendo inglés supongo, pero como libro en sí no tiene nada de especial. El misterio es plano y básico y no me ha transmitido realmente nada que no me esperara.

[Ratratrat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Racconto breve, della serie dei primi, il solito personaggio dalla doppia vita inaspettata che vuol evadere dal tran tran quotidiano. A un certo punto Simenon si ripete negli schemi. La vita del protagonista gli interessa più dello schema della sua morte

[Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the short mysteries, but they didn't really tell me much about the detective himself, so I struggled to understand why the character has drawn so much attention from critics and readers.

[The Contented · Rating 1 out of 5]

A whodunnit and I could not tell you who did - pointless

[Marisa Bantjes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clever atmospheric stories. Well written.

[Aeroyou]

Rapide et ma foi prenant …. Comme d’habitude les hommes sont des gros menteurs !!!!!