In Georges Simenon’s first Maigret novel, Maigret and the
Enigmatic Lett, we are introduced to the dogged investigator tracks Pietr the
Lett (or Latvian in other editions) around Paris
and other locales in France .
Pietr is a globe hopping criminal who thus far has managed to elude the agents
of Interpol and local police. Unfortunately for Pietr, he has wound up in the jurisdiction
of the tenacious Maigret, who will undoubtedly bring his criminal career to an
end.
But who is Peitr the Latvian, really? Is he Oswald
Oppenheim, a debonair gentleman who hob knobs with the world’s elite? Is he
Olaf Swann, a Norwegian merchant officer living in Fecamp with a wife and
family who spends most of his time away from home? Perhaps he is Fedor Yurovich
a Russian alcoholic living in a seedy motel with a slovenly young woman so
devoted that she would kill to protect him? Is he all three? Or is he someone
else entirely? The answer is, of course, complex, this is a detective novel,
after all, but ultimately not much of a surprise and in some ways, rather
obvious.
The novel opens with intrigue, a man matching the bare description
Maigret has of Pietr is found murdered in a train car w.c.; as another man,
also fitting the description walks away from the station. The plot goes on a
bit of a slow burn from there until the end as Maigret spends a few sleepless
days uncovering the true identity of Pietr and how the various players in the
mystery are connected to each other. In the process, Maigret loses his right
hand man, and literal mini-me, who is killed by an assassin, and is himself shot
in the chest and may possibly lose three of his ribs. Yet none of this stops
the indomitable inspector from hunting down his man; all the way back to Fecamp
where Maigret and the “villain” engage in fisticuffs on a jetty among the
rising tide.
Maigret and the Enigmatic Lett is an interesting mystery
novel with a good translation by Daphne Woodward. While it’s certainly
difficult to gauge an author’s work in piece translated out of its original
language, one can get an idea by the plot and feel of the story. Simenon
presents a dreary atmosphere where the police and criminals dwell. The only
bright spot comes in the form of Maigret’s wife, who only appears in a few
scenes. In order to hunt down criminals, law enforcement must follow them into the
murky domains they inhabit, as though any one associated with crime, even on
the good side, becomes touched by their darkness. This does not detract from
the book at all, but rather adds to it a film noiresque atmosphere. The book,
though short, meandered too much to me. Going around a bit and adding in
subplots and characters that didn’t go much of anywhere.
The title of this and other editions, Maigret and the
Enigmatic Lett, is a misnomer, as Peter the Lett (as he is referred to in this
edition) is not enigmatic and is no real mystery. Although we don’t know
exactly who he is until the end, it is quite clear from the beginning the
different identities he assumes; and there is no real mystery as to his
motivations or character. The true enigma of the story is Maigret himself; even
though the third person narrator is inside Maigret’s head for the entire novel,
the reader never really gets a sense of who Maigret is or what makes him tick
as it were. Even the inner workings of his process as all the tumblers fall
into place, are kept a mystery to the reader. Maigret just knows why such and
such is. He’s reminiscent of a Terminator in that he keeps going until he gets
his man, ignoring pain and his body’s need for sleep. Even when the closest
thing to a friend the inspector seems to have is murdered by one of Pietr’s
associates, Maigret and the narrator barely give pause before continuing on.
The only thing Maigret seems to feel is cold as he is constantly seeking warmth
from a fire. For me, this was the biggest drawback of the book. Although I am
fine getting on board with a character who has super human powers of deduction,
I’d like a little heart, which this book is sorely lacking. Maigret is in
desperate need of a Doctor Watson.
No comments:
Post a Comment