Maigret op kamers

Inspector Maigret #37

by Georges Simenon, Pia Fruytier (Translator)

A tutta prima aveva creduto che fosse un po' svitata. Orasi chiedeva se quella esuberanza non fosse dovuta al fatto che lei recitava, non solo per ingannarlo, non solo per nascondergli qualcosa, ma per il puro piacere di interpretare un ruolo. «Si diverte molto, signorina Clément?». «Mi diverto sempre, Commissario». Questa volta lo guardò con tutto il suo ritrovato candore. Nelle scuole femminili c'è quasi sempre almeno una ragazzina di una spanna più alta delle altre e con quelle stesse forme prosperose. A tredici o quattordici anni assomigliano a enormi bambole di pezza, con gli occhi chiari che non vedono niente della vita e un sorriso trasognato sulle labbra. Ma era la prima volta che Maigret ne conosceva una di quarant'anni.

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Fiction, France, Detective, Thriller, French Literature

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1951

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

[Agnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

In rilettura tutti ( 75 ) per la terza volta....

[Razvan Banciu · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is always a thin border in appreciating books, as little details make the final impression.
This one gaines quite a lot due to its characters: the fat hearted lady who almost falls in love with the detective, the guy who comes to see his youth love and protects her to the end, the family of detectives. Not to forget Maigret, his experiences, his habits, his moods, his choices of food and alcohol and his big, big heart...

[Adrian · Rating 5 out of 5]

March 2024 Lunchtime Listen

In the midst of tidying the house and readying it for yet more viewers/potential buyers, our initial sale fell through at the end of last year, the lunchtime listen has been a welcome distraction, in fact more than that.
This was yet another marvellous Maigret novel, that I hadn't read (must be in the 50s that I have read/listened to now) and I have to say it is one of my favourites.

One of Maigret's sidekicks, Inspector Janvier, is on a stake out trying to catch an armed robber, when one night he is out having a cigarette when he unexpectedly shot, Badlly injured he is whisked off to hospital and Maigret is informed.
Mrs Maigret is currently in the Alsace looking after her poorly sister, Maigret as usual does not know how to cope with her absence, his flat feels empty and he misses her company and most of all her cooking.
He therefore takes the opportunity to assume control of Janvier's case and also lead the investigation into his attempted murder. He decides that he is going to move into the boarding house that was being staked out to move both cases forward.
As ever with a Maigret novel, the feeling created is just so French, so Parisienne, and the story is just so full of wonderful characters.
Needless to say, Janvier thankfully is on the road to recovery once the bullet is removed and Maigret follows all the leads to a successful conclusion to both cases.
Wonderfully read as ever by Gareth Armstrong who I have to say is one of the best narrators !!

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Madame Maigret is away from Paris due to a family emergency; leaving her husband at a loss. He has no real case to keep his focus and he appears aimless and out of step with a bachelor existence.
Paris however seems full of temptations but before he succumbs to eating snails the tragic shooting of Janvier brings him work. His detective was working a case of a robbery and on surveilance when he took a bullet in the chest, standing outside the rooming house where the suspect lived.
This is a common theme in modern crime series; man down, rally round leave no stone unturned until the potential cop killer is brought to justice. From Simenon's perspective the job was always an unsafe profession and he describes on entering the Quai des Orfèvres the pictures of the fallen officers, killed in the line of duty.
Yet the investigation appears to be going nowhere; it seems unrelated to the original armed robbery. Maigret takes up residence in the guset house to keep watch and try to establish the events of the night when inspector Janvier was almost killed.
I loved the awareness Maigret has for women which is perhaps not so pc today, however he is ever the gentleman and clearly misses his wife. His time in the room is frustrating and he again demonstrates a patience to see the thing through.
Eventually the motive behind the events comes out but not before a wonderful story unfolds full of tension, observation and comedy. Interestingly it shows Maigret's methods against the normal background enquiries is an equal factor in reaching a satisfactory conclusion. It also points out to his sense of justice, and understanding of criminal classes and a williness to keep to his word.
Perhaps the greatest plot mechanism is that the evening the case is solved Madame Maigret is due to arrive back in Paris.
Will he tell her about all the women he has been living in close proximity with and the amount of alcohol he has consumed along the way? I think so, this relationship is tight and it is telling between the pages just how much he has missed her. This humanity captured in the writing of Simenon is what has kept this books in print. I hope you will take advantage of this and catch one of his Maigret novels.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maigret’s wife is away looking after a sick sister. One of his detectives is shot while doing a stakeout of a boarding house. Maigret takes a room at the boarding house to investigate why his detective was shot. I love reading Maigret novels they are addictive, psychologically complex where it is all about the human personality. His writing is compelling and crisp.

Maigret ensconces himself in the life of the boarding house with the concierge Mademoiselle Clement he finds a substitute Madame Maigret. He becomes like a local drinking and having his meals at a nearby bistro. Man does he drink a few glasses of wine after and during breakfast, liqueurs with the concierge and a few beers at night to settle his stomach. His liver is formidable!

The stakeout where the detective was shot makes no sense as the suspects are low level criminals who robbed a nightclubs of it’s takings with a toy gun. Further investigation identifies a bed ridden woman opposite the boarding house who raises Maigret’s suspicion that she has a lover and he further investigates. The motivation for the attempted murder is then revealed.

[Three · Rating 4 out of 5]

con Maigret è sempre come reincontrare un vecchio amico.
questo incontro è particolarmente piacevole.

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

Reading a Maigret novel is like eating a home-cooked meal; it's nothing fancy, but it's solid, filling and comforting. This time Maigret finds himself alone as Madame has gone off to Alsace to care for an ailing sister. When Janvier gets shot during a stakeout, le patron is more than happy to move into the boarding house he'd been watching when he was hit. (What amazes me is that no one downtown seems to mind; even his superiors phone him there as a matter of course.) As always, he slips into the skin of the suspect, even though he doesn't have one. His solid stolidity leads him right in the end, as ever. He gets hold of the end of the thread and follows it to the inevitable other end. The short story that inspired the film "Rear Window" was published in 1942. As I read, I began to wonder if Simenon had read the story. It wouldn't surprise me, given the similarities.

A couple of things stuck out, but only because I'm used to teleplays of the books. Turns out Janvier is enough younger than Maigret to be referred to by him as "le petit Janvier", though in the films J. is always an older man. Also, I am again moved to wonder if our man Jules is actually an alcoholic...but I'm not alone; the local publican apparently wonders the same thing.

This is the only Maigret I've read so far with chapter headings, all of which being "In which..." I found that a bit odd, but it didn't stop me enjoying this hearty, simple dish. Delicious.

[Daniele Palma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simenon è una garanzia.

[Ivonne Rovira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspector Janvier is shot — nearly fatally — while on a stakeout, and Chief Inspector Maigret takes over the investigation in order to capture the would-be cop killer. Telling you any more would spoil the adventure, but I do want to say that Georges Simenon imbues this novel, the 37th in the series, with even more nuance this usual. I just loved it.

[Antonella Imperiali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Davanti alla pensione presso la quale alloggiava l’indiziato di un furto, viene ferito con un colpo di pistola un ispettore durante il suo turno di appostamento.
L’ispettore colpito è un uomo di Maigret, così il commissario - complice la temporanea assenza della moglie - si vede costretto a trasferirsi presso la medesima pensione per poter svolgere al meglio le sue indagini.
Tante persone da interrogare, ognuna con la sua storia, tanti vicini da sentire e osservare, tante finestre da scrutare, fino a conoscere le abitudini di ciascuno. Una piccola strada, un piccolo mondo; una storia dentro l’altra, fino a risalire ad un delitto di molti anni prima e alla persona responsabile del crimine attuale.

Leggermente sotto tono, piacevole anche se piuttosto lento; finale forse un po’ tirato. Solita grande scaltrezza, solita grande umanità del nostro commissario.

3,5/5


🌍 LdM: Belgio 🇧🇪 (autore)
✍️ GS/Maigret

[PuPilla · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Az ég rózsaszínű volt. Az utcák is rózsaszínnek tűntek. Kora tavasz illatú este volt, minden kávéház teraszán emberek üldögéltek."

Meggyötört lelkemnek kellett már egy kis tavaszillatú Párizs és pipázó Maigret. :) Jól választottam a Maigret albérletben című kötettel, kellemes hangulatú, érdekes nyomozást kaptam.

Madame Maigret nincs otthon. Elutazott a nővéréhez, aki épp kórházban van. Maigret így aztán ebben a kötetben magányosan próbálja eltölteni és kitölteni az idejét, épp nem foglalják le annyira a futó ügyek ugyanis... Egészen addig, amíg telefont nem kap: Janvier-t meglőtték! A felügyelő megkezdi szokásos, komótos helyszínbejárását, és hogy teljesen bele tudjon helyezkedni a nyomozásba, és minél jobban megismerje a Rue Lhomond bérházainak lakóit, egyenesen be is költözik Clément kisasszony egyik szobájába.

Az alkoholválaszték hatalmas ebben a részben; előfordul aperitif, fehérbor, calvados, a már említett Chartreuse likőr, szilvapálinka és a hőn áhított hideg sör is.
És persze pipázás:

"Pipájának füstjétől a levegő egyre kékebb lett, egész füstlepel keringett a lazacszínű lámpaernyő körül."

Rendkívül élveztem elmerülni a történetben, még ha kicsit a véletlenen múlt is, hogy hogyan jut a tettes nyomára Maigret, hogyan is vesz észre dolgokat, pusztán a kis ablakkockákat figyelve a saját ablakából.
Nagyon szuper filmet lehetne forgatni ebből a regényből: a szüntelen nézelődés, a bérházak, a párizsi utcákon való kóborlás, a pipafüstös elmélkedések, a hajthatatlanság, amivel Maigret "rászállt" a gyanús egyénekre, és a panziós Clément kisasszony, a "lencsibaba"...
Jólesett ez a könyv, mint Maigret-nek a pohár fehérborok és a hideg sörök. :)

Kicsit bővebben itt: https://pupillaolvas.blogspot.com/202...

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Street life...

Following a robbery, the police are staking out a rooming-house where the suspect had been living in the hopes that he will return. But one evening, one of the police officers, Janvier, is shot outside the house. The police think it may have been the robbery suspect, Paulus, who shot him, so it's even more vital now that they catch him. Maigret is on his own at the moment as his wife is away looking after her sick sister, so he decides to move into the rooming-house to be on the spot should Paulus return.

I enjoyed this one a lot. We know straight away that Janvier is still alive, so the plot isn't quite as dark as it would have been had he been killed, but we still get to see the emotional impact of the shooting on Janvier's wife. The rooming-house is run by the charming Mademoiselle Clément, a lady of middle years and twinkling eye, whose somewhat over-the-top personality provides a lot of fun and humour. As always, Simenon creates an authentic feel of Paris, and the rooming-house setting allows for there to be several characters, each with their own story. Maigret is at something of a loss without his wife though part of him is rather enjoying the adventure of living in the rooming-house, and he doesn't seem averse to a little mild flirting with his landlady. He gradually chats to most of the people in the street, the shop and café owners as well as the neighbours, and while Maigret is gathering together clues that will lead to the solution, Simenon is building up an affectionate picture of life in one of the less fashionable streets of Paris.

I listened to the Audible version, narrated by Gareth Armstrong. He speaks more quickly than most narrators and I rather liked that and felt it suited the tone of the book – kept it going at a rattling pace. He gives different voices to the various characters, using English accents throughout and suiting them well to the class and position in society each holds. I prefer the use of English accents when “foreign” characters are supposed to be speaking in their own language – it sounds more natural than having the characters speak English in a faux foreign accent. His portrayal of Mlle Clément is a little caricatured, which works for her character and adds to the lightness in tone of the book. All-in-all, I think it's an excellent narration.

The solution is more complex than it seems as if it's going to be, and Maigret gets there by a nifty little piece of detective work. And the story behind the crime gives us a glimpse into darkness, so that in the end the tone is nicely balanced. The translation is by Shaun Whiteside, which means that it's smooth and flawless. Most enjoyable – I'm looking forward to reading more of Maigret's adventures, or listening to them.

NB This book was provided for review by Audible via MidasPR.

www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com

[The Frahorus · Rating 2 out of 5]

Stavolta Maigret si trova con uno dei suoi ispettori preferiti, Janvier, ferito da un proiettile di pistola e decide di trasferirsi in una camera nella pensione a Montparnasse (approfittando anche del fatto che sua moglie era andata ad accudire la sorella malata) dove Janvier stava appostato dove stavano indagando per un furto. E così il commissario si ritrova circondato dalla vita quotidiana dei vari vicini che osserva dalla sua finestra, come nel celebre film "La finestra sul cortile" di Hitchcock. La pensione è diretta dalla signorina Clement la quale, scopriremo ben presto, anche lei ha qualcosa da nascondere (sotto al letto). Mentre il commissario inizia a conoscere le abitudini dei vari personaggi che abitano nella pensione e nelle case vicine, resta colpito dalla casa di fronte dove abita la signora Françoise Boursicault la quale è costretta a letto.

Simenon rimane un grande narratore, su questo non ci sono dubbi, ma questa indagine non mi ha colpito tanto, anzi l'ho trovata un po' noiosetta.

[Roberto Rho · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interessante. La portinaia pettegola é una bella invenzione.

[Trudy · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
My old copy of this book also has an interview with Simenon published in a Paris Journal many years ago. I actually enjoyed the interview more than the book. Simenon approached his novels a bit like method acting. He would get checked over by his Doctor at the beginning and get approval to start. He would then become Maigret, having no idea what was going to happen in his novel. His novels are short because he could only keep this up for short periods; his blood pressure would rise and his Doctor had to intervene!
I enjoy getting inside Maigret’s head and trying to follow his thought patterns and observations; there is also much wit and intrigue.

[Jayaprakash Satyamurthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Almost a Parisian Rear Window as Maigret moves into a boarding house to track the person who shot one of his inspectors. He immerses himself in the minutiae of the little street and uncovers a years old mystery. Little touches of humour leaven the tale in a way that is generally absent in Simenon's non-Maigret novels.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

The list of writers who admire is work is almost legendary: William Faulkner, Muriel Spark, A N Wilson, Andre Gide, P D James, Anita Brookner, and John Banville, to name just a few. George Simenon's Maigret Takes a Room is another superb outing for Chief Inspector Maigret, who personally supervises an investigation in the shooting of one of his men.

His wife being away to stay with her sister, Maigret takes a room in the boarding house in front of which the shooting occurred. He becomes a fixture in the neighborhood, eating all his meals at a local brasserie until the case almost solves itself. Almost, because Maigret knows he has to do all the right things first. At one point, Simenon writes: "They didn't look like much, but these few certainties were the result of a considerable number of interrogations."

Sometimes, it seems that the Chief Inspector solves his cases based on pure intuition. It helps that he has first paved the way by an excruciating attention to detail. And it is fun to see it all happen.

[Tommasina · Rating 4 out of 5]

L’ispettore Maigret con la sua eleganza, la sua pipa, i bicchieri di calvados ci trasporta nella Parigi dalle atmosfere fumose. Indaga osservando attentamente e facendo sempre le domande giuste. Oramai per me Simenon è una garanzia!

[John Frankham · Rating 5 out of 5]

A re-read in 2019 confirms the 5*.

Simenon delivers again.

Young Inspector Janvier is shot, in the dark, in Montparnasse when he lights a cigarette. Maigret's wife is away with her sister, so he takes a room in the seedy lodging house close to the shooting, eases himself into the lives of the residents to enable him to understand the characters, their driving forces and struggles, and thence tries to solve the crime.

Simenon at his humane best, describing the struggling poor, both downtrodden and aspirational. Some genteel, fighting against loneliness and aging, some petty, and not so petty, criminals, but, as Maigret concludes - good people.

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is a certain cosiness about a Maigret mystery. It's familiar; however different the stories are, the general tenets are the same. You know what you're getting into, yet Simenon still can hold you in suspense and offer a few surprises.

In this addition to the Maigret canon, the Inspector moves into a boarding house presumably full of suspects to the near-fatal shooting of a police officer. A slim and precise investigation follows as Maigret works through the suspects with humour and nuance.

Simenon is an easy writer to enjoy. It's simple prose with quirky characters and fun scenarios. He's good for a cold winter night with a hot cuppa. Always satisfying.

[Amaranta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Che cosa succede se durante un appostamento notturno sparano ad un ispettore della squadra di Maigret? Che lui approfittando dell’improvvisa assenza della moglie, solo e padrone del suo tempo, si trasferisce nella pensione tenuta sotto osservazione per studiare dall’interno il caso. E nei pochi giorni che portano alla risoluzione del caso si sente a casa, coccolato dalla proprietaria, la signorina Clement, una rubiconda parigina rumorosa ma accogliente. Un caso che ne nasconde un altro. Tante finestre da tenere d’occhio, tanti pensionanti con cui interfacciarsi ma la nota tenera è che lontano da casa e dalla sua signora Maigret si sente quasi in imbarazzo a stare a suo agio. Piacevole lettura.

[Utti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simenon è una garanzia. Dopo aver letto "La camera azzurra" non vedevo l'ora di affondare il naso in un nuovo caso di Simenon.
La pipa di Maigret, la sua capacità analitica e la sua passione per il cibo creano dipendenza: in 3 ore di treno ho divorato le 160 pagine del libro senza riuscire a staccare gli occhi dalle pagine. I personaggi sono tratteggiati con tratti chiari e distintivi, tutti con una loro peculiarità, le lentiggini, la risata forte, il fumo azzurro della pipa. Un intreccio poliziesco da dipanare e una Parigi da attraversare al fianco di Maigret.
La strada della mia passione per Simenon è ormai tracciata.

[George · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. An engaging crime fiction novel where detective Maigret investigates the shooting of one of his police officers. Maigret takes a room in the boarding house near where the shooting occurred. He interviews all the boarding house residents and the manager. The police officer shot had been watching the boarding house for a suspected thief.

This book was first published in France in 1951 and is the 37th novel in the Maigret series.

[Juan Nalerio · Rating 2 out of 5]

No me convenció la historia. Me aburrió.
Tengo 3 libros que reúnen varias novelitas de Maigret.
Pertenecieron a la biblioteca personal de Mario Levrero, así que vamos a seguir leyendolas.

[Zella Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a chief inspector, Maigret's technically above the work of pulling stakeout shifts, but when one of his favorite detectives is shot while surveilling a boardinghouse and Madame Maigret goes out of town to tend to her sister, Maigret decides to take up the case and move into the boardinghouse in question.

The result is a claustrophobic story of domestic affairs gone awry as Maigret is deeply discomfited by the absence of his wife and his wounded colleague. Along the way, he comes to know all the residents of the boardinghouse and engages in a hilarious battle of wills with the passive aggressively cheerful landlady and the inscrutable invalid who lives across the street.

The tone of this one seemed a bit different from the other Maigret novels I've read recently. It's less of a traditional police procedural and more of a domestic fiction with procedural overtones, but I rather enjoyed it. It's about as far away as you can get from the Paris underworld, but the cloistered boardinghouse and its inhabitants' mundane routines are vividly brought to life.

Georges Simenon crafts some of the strongest supporting and ancillary characters I've encountered in detective fiction, and that's probably this novel's biggest strength. Inspector Janvier--the unfortunate detective who was shot on assignment--is one of my favorites of all of Maigret's minions, so I was deeply invested in his well-being. (How could someone want to shoot Janvier?!?!) But the various boardinghouse residents and the folks Maigret encounters in his adventure ring true and are weirdly fascinating in their own right.

As great as Simenon is at creating atmosphere and engaging characters, I did notice in this book that he can be a little sloppy with details. At different points, he seemed to forget how many children he'd given Janvier, which struck me as funnier than it had any right to be. That's something that has irritated me with other writers--here's looking at you, Larry McMurtry--and would normally cause me to deduct some stars, but it didn't bother me with this one. I've been sufficiently charmed by the series to be forgiving.

[Lynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Temporarily alone, as Mme Maigret is staying with her sister, our hero finds himself investigating the shooting of one of his detectives, Inspector Janvier. At a loose end, Maigret moves into the odd boarding house at the centre of the investigation and encounters a range of strange characters who may or may not be implicated in the crime.

Another short novel in the Maigret series, but different from Maigret and the Young Girl as this doesn't concern itself with procedure but focuses on Maigret's wanderings, frequent visits to bars whilst he attempts to track down the assailant.

Engaging and, as with most of Simeon, a quick and rewarding read.

[Rhys · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great 'Maigret' novel.

It was my 70th 'Maigret' novel. There are 75 in total, so only 5 more to go and then I am done! I have been reading the novels for six years and I doubt I will ever again read such a large series.

When I began reading them I wondered which title would be the last one I read, as they can be read in any order and I read whichever one came to me by chance. But when I got down to the final six I decided to use a dice to select them. *Maigret's Failure* will be the next one: the dice have just spoken.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

#37 in the Maigret series, but all are stand-alones so can be read in any order.

Maigret is a comfortable chief inspector who knows his way around bars and bistros. There are many fewer mysteries set in Paris than, say, London, so it is always lovely to find Maigret poking around the various neighborhoods in his jurisdiction. His wife is perhaps most notable for not being around.

This story starts out as an investigation of an armed robbery and lead to the shooting of a police detective. In the end Maigret arrests a man for other crimes. Subtle detection from the window of an apartment building.

[Antonella Montesanti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simenon è una garanzia assoluta.
Questo piccolo libro giallo è un grande libro giallo.
Un caso che ne racchiude un altro.
Il burbero commissario Maigret la sua pipa si trasferiscono nella pensione parigina davanti a cui hanno sparato ad un ispettore.
Tante finestre da osservare, tante camere da spiare, tante storie da ascoltare.
Piano piano, camera dopo camera, storia dopo storia, Maigret arriverà alla verità che nasconde una verità accaduta tempo fa.
Adoro Simenon e non mi stancherò mai di leggere e consigliare ogni suo libro, sia che abbia protagonista Maigret, sia che riguardi altro.

[Littlerhymes]

A detective takes a room in a boarding house with many very Parisian people. He smokes so much and drinks so much, it's truly a different time lol. HOW many wines and cigars at breakfast?? Very readable.