Maigret Enjoys Himself

Inspector Maigret, Book 50

De: Georges Simenon

Narrado por: Gareth Armstrong

Inspector Maigret is meant to be taking a holiday, but he can't resist following the development of his colleague Janvier's case in the papers - and playing a few tricks on the way.

Standing at the window in the middle of the morning, vaguely observing the comings and goings in the street, he had a feeling that reminded him of certain days in his childhood, when his mother was still alive and he was off school because he had the flu or it was the end of term. It was the feeling of finding out what went on when he wasn't there.

©1957 Georges Simenon (P)2018 Audible Studios

Georges Joseph Christian Simenon (1903 – 1989)

Georges Joseph Christian Simenon (1903 – 1989) was a Belgian writer who claimed to have slept with 10,000 women in his search for "la femme." His literary output was nearly as prolific yet always quite good.

One of the best

This story reveals Maigret at his most vulnerable in that he's on holiday and cannot interfere with a sensational murder case that has taken place in his absence. The story shares more interactions between Maigret and his wife. There were a few very funny moments in the story that caused me to laugh out loud. I am a great fan of Simenon and the Maigret stories. This is definitely one of the best in the series for me. It was very entertaining until the very end.

Very enjoyable!

In this story Inspector Maigret, our protagonist, is supposed to be on holiday with his wife, and everyone thinks he is away when a scandalous crime occurs. As he is supposed to be away, Maigret is forced to follow the story as an interested civilian, relying on newspapers accounts and his instincts and experience, but without his usual inside track. It was a novel idea and rather fun. Along the way, we get to experience a lot of Paris, especially various cafés, as Maigret and his wife enjoy a “staycation”

I am late to the Maigret series but enjoying them very much. Before now I have only read a few of the translated books (my French is not up to reading a whole book) and I wasn’t sure how well an audio version would do; but I actually enjoyed this quite a lot. I think Armstrong got a good feeling for the book and character. Sometimes with translated work it loses something or feels awkward, but that wasn’t an issue. There aren’t any French accents among the characters, but he handles the names and places smoothly.

One of the best of Simenon’s stories.

Perfect story, expertly presented from the start to the end.
Gareth is the best narrator, and Simenon beats them all, including Doyle.

High end of Maigret books with a fun little twist

Having read and listened to around 10 maigret books at this point, this is definitely on the higher end of the quality spectrum. The mystery is relatively straightforward and doesn't fall into the trap of being too convoluted as some of the lesser books in the series have a tendency to do. There's a pleasant slice of life feel to this one, though it's less psychologically interesting than the very best books in the series tend to be.