L'Étoile du Nord et autres enquêtes de Maigret

by Georges Simenon

Pour résoudre ses affaires de meurtre, le commissaire Maigret a une méthode infaillible. Des bars mal famés de Pigalle aux hôtels douteux du quartier de la gare du Nord, ce fin connaisseur de la comédie humaine observe beaucoup, fume avec délectation son inséparable pipe et attend "le fait significatif qui ne manque jamais de se produire. Le tout, c'est d'être là quand il a lieu et d'en profiter..." Trois enquêtes captivantes du célèbre commissaire Maigret, par un très grand romancier du XXᵉ siècle.

Genres: Fiction, Roman

128 pages, Pocket Book

First published January 1, 1938

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

[paper0r0ss0 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Racconti inferiori e un po' deludenti comparati a quelli che troviamo in "Rue Pigalle" e "La locanda degli annegati". Il nostro commissario ormai in pensione si aggira con aria svagata nei tatri che vedono lo svolgimento delle sue indagini ufficiose. Il problema e' che ad essersi imbolsito non e' il nostro investigatore, ma l'autore, deciso a fare uscire prematuramente di scena la sua creatura (meno male che ci ha ripensato).

[icaro · Rating 3 out of 5]

Non proprio il fondo del barile, ma la misura del racconto breve toglie spessore alle dinamiche tipiche del commissario. In positivo mostra che il 'serbatoio' di figure di Simenon sembra inesauribile...

[Antoine Rensonnet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Premier recueil de nouvelles de Simenon lu et j’ai bien apprécié :) Le commissaire Maigret m’a fait rire par instants et le recueil est tout à fait accessible.

[Svet Mori · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very short review : it seems Georges Simenon's pen and I don't get along very well. The first and last story both rely on Maigret resolving the case without clues, just thinking and speaking to himself. It's a style, but i didn't was hooked. "Stan le tueur" however is much better, with rythm and good characters and a bit of tension. Loved this one, and might give Migret another chance on a longer story, if I find one in the same spirit.

[Guillaume HUNTZINGER · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mon premier Simenon ! Lecture facile, agréable avec de bon mots pour décrire Maigret et ses acolytes en peu de mots ... je retrouve l’atmosphère incarnée par Bruno Crémer dans les épisodes tv de mon enfance.

[Melainebooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Il y a trois histoires. Je n’ai pas accroché à la première mais la deuxième et troisième oui !
Je n’avais jamais lu de romans de Georges Simenon et de son inspecteur Maigret.

C’est un grand OUI ! (Et je ne suis pas une lectrice de romans policiers).

[Jan De Meulder · Rating 3 out of 5]

always entertaining

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

J’AI ADORÉ OMG C’ÉTAIT INCROYABLE
J’ai pas vu le temps passer Maigret le goat il est trop charismatique je m’en remet pas.
Les fins trop incroyable je m’y attendais pas

[Matteo Bordoni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un Maigret in pensione ma costretto, per varie ragioni continenti, ad indagare su casi che sembrano impossibili da risolvere ai giovani detective. Il suo fiuto e le sue deduzioni lo portano, come sempre, a risolvere il caso con sforzi minimi.

[Procyon Lotor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I racconti pare servissero a Simenon per esplorare Maigret ucronici, laterali o alternativi in qualche modo a una consueta stabilit� di carattere attraverso una coerente cronologia in una francia aderente ai tempi. In alcuni era assai pi� duro e secco di quello dei romanzi, qui pur aderente alla forma del racconto - sono indagini intrinsecamente brevi - esamina ben prima del tempo naturale un Maigret in pensione, che viene tirato per la giacca o afferrato ai capelli per trascinarlo in un'indagine.

[Jefferson Fortner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book (as I almost always enjoy a Maigret book), although this time it took me a long time to read it because it is in the original French, and it was just tough enough to tax my understanding without causing me to give up. This one has three Maigret short stories, so I was able to take a brief break twice. I followed the stories pretty well, although I am sure some details went right past me more than once. Certainly, I feel that my French skills are improving, but slowly and grudgingly.