Bill AlderMaigret, Simenon and FranceSocial Dimensions of the Novels and StoriesForeword by Stephen KnightMcFarland, 201311 photos, bibliography, index220pp. softcover (6 x 9)ISBN: 978078647054940,00 EURAbout the BookGeorges Simenon (1903-1989) was a phenomenally successful author of crime fiction. His 75 Maigret novels and 28 Maigret short stories were published between 1931 and 1972 to great international acclaim (he is the only non-anglophone crime writer to have achieved such renown).His Maigret stories are regarded by many as having established a new direction in crime fiction, emphasizing social and psychological portraiture rather than focussing on a puzzle to be solved or on "action."This book examines the importance of social class and social change in the Maigret stories, giving a particular emphasis to the early formative novels and the development of plot, characterization and setting. The author seeks to establish the extent to which Simenon’s portrait of French society is historically accurate and the nature of the influence of the author’s own class position and ideology on his fiction.About the AuthorBill Alder is an associate lecturer in French with the Open University in the United Kingdom. He has published articles in English and French on Maigret, Simenon and crime fiction, in American, British and Belgian journals. He lives in France.Table of ContentsAcknowledgments viForeword by Stephen Knight 1Preface 5Introduction 9Chapter 1The Fayard Maigret Novels: Narratives, Contexts,Settings and Themes, 1931 21Chapter 2The Fayard Maigret Novels: Narratives, Contexts,Settings and Themes, 1932 53Chapter 3The Fayard Maigret Novels: Simenon’s Perspective 91Chapter 4Short Stories and Journalism: Maigret, Simenon andthe Crises of the 1930s 114Chapter 5What Maigret Did Next 145Chapter 6Conclusions 173Bibliography 197Index 20
Bill AlderMaigret, Simenon and FranceSocial Dimensions of the Novels and StoriesForeword by Stephen KnightMcFarland, 201311 photos, bibliography, index220pp. softcover (6 x 9)ISBN: 978078647054940,00 EURAbout the BookGeorges Simenon (1903-1989) was a phenomenally successful author of crime fiction. His 75 Maigret novels and 28 Maigret short stories were published between 1931 and 1972 to great international acclaim (he is the only non-anglophone crime writer to have achieved such renown).His Maigret stories are regarded by many as having established a new direction in crime fiction, emphasizing social and psychological portraiture rather than focussing on a puzzle to be solved or on "action."This book examines the importance of social class and social change in the Maigret stories, giving a particular emphasis to the early formative novels and the development of plot, characterization and setting. The author seeks to establish the extent to which Simenon’s portrait of French society is historically accurate and the nature of the influence of the author’s own class position and ideology on his fiction.About the AuthorBill Alder is an associate lecturer in French with the Open University in the United Kingdom. He has published articles in English and French on Maigret, Simenon and crime fiction, in American, British and Belgian journals. He lives in France.Table of ContentsAcknowledgments viForeword by Stephen Knight 1Preface 5Introduction 9Chapter 1The Fayard Maigret Novels: Narratives, Contexts,Settings and Themes, 1931 21Chapter 2The Fayard Maigret Novels: Narratives, Contexts,Settings and Themes, 1932 53Chapter 3The Fayard Maigret Novels: Simenon’s Perspective 91Chapter 4Short Stories and Journalism: Maigret, Simenon andthe Crises of the 1930s 114Chapter 5What Maigret Did Next 145Chapter 6Conclusions 173Bibliography 197Index 20