In 2005 he was nominated for the title of De Grootste Belg (The Greatest Belgian). In 1966, Simenon was given the MWA's highest honor, the Grand Master Award. Simenon also wrote a large number of 'psychological novels', such as La neige était sale (1948) or Le fils (1957), as well as several autobiographical works, in particular Je me souviens (1945), Pedigree (1948), Mémoires intimes (1981). Two television series (1960-93) have been made in Great Britain.ĭuring his 'American' period, Simenon reached the height of his creative powers, and several novels of those years were inspired by the context in which they were written (Trois chambres à Manhattan (1946), Maigret à New York (1947), Maigret se fâche (1947)). The Maigret novels were translated into all major languages and several of them were turned into films and radio plays.

The first novel in the series, Pietr-le-Letton, appeared in 1931 the last one, Maigret et M. He is best known, however, for his 75 novels and 28 short stories featuring Commissaire Maigret. Altogether, about 550 million copies of his works have been printed. His oeuvre includes nearly 200 novels, over 150 novellas, several autobiographical works, numerous articles, and scores of pulp novels written under more than two dozen pseudonyms. Simenon was one of the most prolific writers of the twentieth century, capable of writing 60 to 80 pages per day. A prolific author who published nearly 500 novels and numerous short works, Simenon is best known as the creator of the fictional detective Jules Maigret.Īlthough he never resided in Belgium after 1922, he remained a Belgian citizen throughout his life. Georges Joseph Christian Simenon (1903 – 1989) was a Belgian writer.

The Widow by Georges Simenon