An interesting little collection of Simenon short stories, written between about 1939 and 1949. The publishers are being economical with the truth, as ever: the novella "Les petits cochons sans queue" is probably the best piece in the collection, but it doesn't feature Maigret. He appears in a couple of short stories later in the book. Hardened fans of the Commissaire might be a little disappointed by what they get, but the book is certainly also worth reading for the story "L'Homme dans la rue" (1939), where Maigret tracks a suspect day and night through a succession of sleazy bars and hotels in a kind of reprise of L'Homme qui regardait passer les trains (1938). Simenon is a genius at using mundane details to depict the steady process of degradation of someone cut off from access to the usual safety networks of respectable life. ( )