Thursday, February 25, 2021

The Dancer at the Gai-Moulin: Georges Simenon

When I was younger I read a number of Maigret novels and also some standalone novels by Georges Simenon, but it has been many, many years. I have had several of his books on my TBR pile for years, and now I hope to get back to reading his books.

I chose The Dancer at the Gai-Moulin to start with because it is set in Belgium and I had been looking for a book for that country for the European Reading Challenge. The setting is Liège, Belgium, which was the author's home town. However, it may not have been the best one to read as my reintroduction to the Maigret series. Detective Chief Inspector Maigret does not show up in the first part of the book, and I don't think that is typical. 

As the story begins, two teenage boys are drinking at a nightclub, the Gai-Moulin. They are planning to steal some money from the cash register after the place closes. In the dark, they stumble over a body on the floor and leave quickly without completing their mission. They soon become entangled with the police, who are trying to figure out why the dead body was found in a park in a laundry basket.

At first I was having problems getting into the plot and figuring out who all the characters were and how they were related. It turned out that the police were as mystified as I was. Then the story got more interesting as the twists in the plot pulled me in. 

The book is bleak, although the mood and the pace does pick up toward the end. The writing is spare, and depends a good deal on dialogue. Reading this book has encouraged me to read more by Simenon. It turns out that four of the novels I have were published in the same year as this one, 1931. 


The following comments on books by Simenon are from an article titled "How Georges Simenon reinvented the detective novel with Maigret" at the Penguin website. The article is brief and interesting.

Though he also wrote more than 100 psychological novels he referred to as ‘romans durs’ (hard stories), Simenon is best known for his books featuring Detective Chief Inspector Jules Maigret, published between 1931 and 1973. Penguin has published new translations of all 75 Maigrets over the last six years, at a rate of one per month. (Previous translations were of mixed quality, sometimes even changing the endings.) 


Other reviews at:



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Publisher: Penguin Classics, 2014 (orig. pub. 1931)
Length: 153 pages
Format: Trade paperback
Setting:  Liège, Belgium
Genre:   Mystery, Police Procedural
Source:  Purchased in 2020.
Translated by Siân Reynolds



26 comments:

Cath said...

Thanks for the link to my reveiw, I had to go and read it to remind myself what I thought. LOL! It definitely wasn't one of my favourite Maigrets but the books are always readable, some of them being excellent with a terrific sense of place.

CLM said...

I can't remember if I have read this author or not. Maybe I was daunted by the vast number of books in the series - I seem to recall my hometown library had dozens of them. It is shocking that a poor translation damaged the books so much! However, I am surprised that Penguin reissued so many as such projects require a certain number of units to work.

By the way, I am happy to mail you my Newfoundland book so it is ready when you are in the mood for your Canadian challenge. It is definitely worth reading despite some of the quibbles I had.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Can never get over that he was able to write a novel in three weeks. I can't write a story that fast.

col2910 said...

Spooky I was sorting some books out earlier today and I have the exact same copy. I'll have to give him an airing soon.

TracyK said...

Col, I hope you do read and review something by him, I am eager to see what you have to say about his books.

TracyK said...

Cath, I was interested to see that you gave this book only three stars on goodreads but had good things to say about it. But I had a similar reaction. I was disappointed to start with, but ended up liking it, and either way I want to read more.

Margot Kinberg said...

He was such a prolific writer!! Wow! I have to say I prefer the Maigret novels where he plays a more prominent part from early on in the book. But still, Simenon was a talented writer. Even the books that aren't his best are still good, I think. Thanks for reminding me of this one, Tracy.

TracyK said...

Constance, that is a good point about the number of books in the Maigret series. When I read them at a much younger age, I was getting all my books via whatever was at the library on the shelves, and so I never worried about order. And I guess I assume that in this type of series, order does not matter. The books are all very brief. This one at about 150 pages is about as long as they get.

I would love to read the book set in Newfoundland. I guess we could communicate via goodreads mail so I could provide my email address?

TracyK said...

Patti, I agree, it is amazing that Simenon wrote books so rapidly. The Penguin article also said he threw out a novel if he had to stop working on it for over 48 hours.

TracyK said...

Margot, it is overwhelming to think of reading all of Simenon's writing, even though the novels are short by comparison to books we read now. And Jose Ignacio of A Crime is Afoot has reviewed all of the Maigret novels over the last few years. That is a feat.

Lex @ Lexlingua said...

The book cover struck me as very different for a book that was published in the 1930s-1950s. When I think of Christie or Wodehouse or Allingham, their books tend to have that cartoon/ caricature effect, but Simeonon gets a very gritty modern cover? I'm guessing it is because this one was bleak and a terse/ spare writing style. I would really want to know how they decide the cover reprints...
~ Lex (lexlingua.co)

TracyK said...

Lex, the cover for this book fit the story perfectly. The dancer in the title is interesting. The story is almost like spy fiction in that no one is who they seem. Simenon's books are very different from Christie or Allingham, and not like Wodehouse either, although I only know those books by reputation.

Some of the "new" Penguin book covers for the Maigret series are very nice, it almost makes me willing to buy all new copies. And they are not that expensive.

Rick Robinson said...

I have a great many unread Simenon books on the shelf, all the older thin paperbacks. I have been working in my “book den”, shelving things, and thus sliding things about to make room. One notices what one has...

This probably isn’t one I’d seek to read next of his.

TracyK said...

Going through books and shifting them around is lots of fun, Rick. Uncovering books that one has lost track of.

If I had known what this story was like I would have saved it for later in the year, and read another one on my shelf. But it was still a good read.

Katrina said...

I haven't read any Simenon books since I was a teenager, but my mother was a huge fan so I should re-visit him, if only for the ambience of Paris.

Ryan said...

I'm always intrigued when they used modern images for new editions of older books. The book itself sounds interesting. Do you have a particular favorite from this author?

FictionFan said...

I've been reading a few of the Maigrets recently and have found them quite variable - some excellent, some feeling as if they end a bit abruptly. This sounds as if he was trying something a bit different with Maigret not appearing till later - interesting. The covers on these editions are great too, aren't they?

Lark said...

Reading one of Simenon's Maigret mysteries is on my "To Read" list for 2021. But I'll be starting with the first one in his series. :)

TracyK said...

Katrina, it will be interesting to hear what you think of the books after all these years. I am looking forward to trying more of them.

TracyK said...

Ryan, it is good to hear from you. To be honest, I only remember one book by Georges Simenon specifically, and it is not part of the Maigret series. It made a big impression on me when I read it. I was much younger but I don't know when. The title is The Accomplices, and it about a man who causes a traffic accident where some children die and he drives on, leaves the scene. I just looked it up and I can find a used copy reasonably, so I will read it again.

TracyK said...

FictionFan, I was looking at all the Penguin Classics covers at the Penguin site and I saw some very nice ones. Some of them I wanted just for the cover.

I was surprised at this one ... the tone was very bleak for most of the book. I did not expect coziness, I don't know what I expected. So it will be good to try more of the series.

TracyK said...

Lark, reading one of the Maigret mysteries this year is a great goal. And starting at the beginning is a good idea too. If I did not already have four books from the series published in 1931, I would get a copy of the first one also. It is so amazing that he published 11 books in 1931.

Nicola said...

Simply love your blog name. Keep meaning to dip my toe in with Simenon, maybe I will start here. Gosh that pink dress!

TracyK said...

Thank you, Nicola. The good thing about Simenon's novels is that they are consistently short, so trying them out is not a big investment timewise.

Neeru said...

Previous translations were of mixed quality, sometimes even changing the ending.

Shocked to read this. Are translators or publishers allowed this liberty?

Wonderful review, btw, Tracy. Planning to read a few Maigrets too.

TracyK said...

Neeru, I had heard bad things about the older translations when Penguin started reissuing the newer editions. I don't know how often this might have happened (and had never heard about changing endings). I do have some editions released long ago, I don't know whether to read those or not. But I would guess that the majority of translations were OK. Who knows?

I definitely think reading Maigret is a good idea.