by Georges Simenon (Author), Anthea Bell (Translator), Georges Simenon (Author), Anthea Bell (Translator)
The second book in the new Penguin Maigret series: Georges Simenon's devastating tale of misfortune, betrayal and the weakness of family ties, in a new translation by Anthea Bell. Instead of the detail filling itself in and becoming clearer, it seemed to escape him. The face of the man in the ill-fitting coat just misted up so that it hardly looked human. In theory this mental portrait was good enough, but now it was replaced by fleeting images which should have added up to one and the same man but which refused to get themselves into focus. The circumstances of Monsieur Gallet's death all seem fake: the name the deceased was travelling under and his presumed profession, and more worryingly, his family's grief. Their haughtiness seems to hide ambiguous feelings about the hapless man. In this haunting story, Maigret discovers the appalling truth and the real crime hidden behind the surface of lies. Penguin is publishing the entire series of Maigret novels in new translations. This novel has been published in previous translations as Maigret Stonewalled and The Death of Monsieur Gallet. 'Compelling, remorseless, brilliant' John Gray 'One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequalled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories' Guardian 'A supreme writer . . . unforgettable vividness' Independent
Format: Paperback
Pages: 176
Edition: First Thus
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Published: 05 Dec 2013
ISBN 10: 0141393378
ISBN 13: 9780141393377
One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequalled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories. --The Guardian
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
I love reading Simenon. He makes me think of Chekhov. --William Faulkner
The greatest of all, the most genuine novelist we have had in literature. --Andr Gide
A supreme writer . . . Unforgettable vividness. --The Independent (London)
Superb . . . The most addictive of writers . . . A unique teller of tales. --The Observer (London)
Compelling, remorseless, brilliant. --John Gray
A truly wonderful writer . . . Marvelously readable--lucid, simple, absolutely in tune with the world he creates. --Muriel Spark
A novelist who entered his fictional world as if he were a part of it. --Peter Ackroyd
Extraordinary masterpieces of the twentieth century. --John Banville