
The Man Who Watched the Trains Go By
Georges Simenon
A brilliant new translation of one of Simenon's best loved masterpieces.
'A certain furtive, almost shameful emotion ... disturbed him whenever he saw a train go by, a night train especially, its blinds drawn down on the mystery of its passengers'
Kees Popinga is a respectable Dutch citizen and family man. Then he discovers that his boss has bankrupted the shipping firm he works for - and something snaps. Kees used to watch the trains go by to exciting destinations. Now, on some dark impulse, he boards one at random, and begins a new life of recklessness and violence. This chilling portrayal of a man who breaks from society and goes on the run asks who we are, and what we are capable of.
'Classic Simenon ... extraordinary in its evocative power' Independent
'What emerges is the bare human animal' John Gray
'Read him at your peril, avoid him at your loss' Sunday Times
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About Georges Simenon
Reviews for The Man Who Watched the Trains Go By
Boyd Tonkin
The Independent
One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequaled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories
Guardian
Compelling . . . Simenon shows how close the deranged mind is to the ordinary mind'
Financial Times