The Yellow Dog

The Yellow Dog by Georges Simenon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I read a number of Georges Simenon’s books about six years ago, including this one. They’re all short—more novellas than novels—and though they tend to have beginnings and ends, to my mind they lack a middle. Maigret is presented with a puzzling case, he skulks about pondering it for a hundred pages, then he solves it by elucidating the astonishing answer to everybody’s great amazement.

That said, Maigret is historically one of the great detectives of detective fiction history. The books are likeable and, as is the way with many series, rather addictive once you get started. Maigret’s gruff character is beautifully and economically drawn, and Simenon creates a great sense of place: you can smell the whiff of garlic, sausiçon, and Gitanes in the air (thanks in no small part, I suspect, to sympathetic translations, in this case by Linda Asher). Oddly, while they’re not exactly timeless, it’s hard to pin down from the writing exactly when they’re set.

The Yellow Dog is no exception to the rule. It’s an attractive puzzle (which I failed to solve even though I read it before) and I enjoyed the fact that Maigret gets to show us the romantic side of his nature in the final few pages, as well as his own sense of justice.

But that’s just my own humble opinion…what do you think? Do let me know! Read for the Crime & Thrillers reading group that I attend at Canada Water Library, and also for my 2015 Goodreads reading challenge.


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