| Plot Summary of Death of a Nobody |
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"Maigret is called to the apartment of Maurice Tremblet, where, according to his wife, Juliette Tremblet, he was getting ready for bed, when she heard a strange pshuittt sound, and he fell over dead. He seemed like such an average person, Maigret couldn't conceive of his being killed, but in fact it had been by an airgun from the hotel across the way. Dr Paul said it was just an accident he was killed by that shot, as the bullet had hit a soft spot and bounced into his heart. When Maigret went to Couvreur et Bellechasse where he was a cashier, it turned out he hadn't worked there for seven years. Yet he had "gone to work" every day, and returned on time every night. Maigret questioned his daughter, Francine Tremblet, 17, and learned that she too had secretly quit her job, and was supported by her father, who she learned by accident was no longer going to his old job, but had a "new, better one". A shopkeeper, Théodore Jussiaume, who sold canaries recognized the picture in the paper, and said he was "Monsieur Charles", a good customer, who'd bought hundreds of birds from him. But he didn't know where he lived.
And then old Cerise, who lived under a bridge on the Seine, found the house on the Quai de la Gare where Tremblet had secretly spent his days, reading or fishing, with his canaries. Soon his mistress, Olga Poissonneau, 29, came forward. She has been meeting him twice a week for two years at the Hôtel Beauséjour. But there was no connection to the murderer. Finally a café waiter, returned from vacation, remembered the picture in the papers and contacted Maigret. He remembered Tremblet playing billiards with a man named Théodore, and when Maigret checked Tremblet's old workplace, he found there'd been a Théodore Ballard there at the same time. He was finally caught, trying to break into the house on Quai de la Gare. He explained that Tremblet had lost interest in him, no longer wanted to meet him, and he was insulted, so he shot him. Eventually the remainder of the 3,000,000 francs, which Tremblet had secretly won in the National Lottery seven years earlier was found in a closet in the house. "
Dana Samson, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Death of a Nobody |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book
descript. of violence and chases - 20%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 60%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 10%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
Tone of story
- Dry-cynical
How difficult to spot villain?
- Difficult, but some clues given
Time/era of story:
- 1960's-1970's
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- nearly 100%
Kind of investigator
- police procedural, Foreign
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- police/lawman
Age:
- 40's-50's
How much violence does he/she use?
- a little
Ethnicity/Race
- French
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Genius (really!)
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- small businessman
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
Motive of antagonist
- revenge
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- France
Style
Part of a series?
Yes
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 1
Unusual forms of death
- perforation--bullets
Unusual form of death?
Yes
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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