Binge-worthy Books: The Adventures of Arsène Lupin by Maurice Leblanc
- Elise
- Apr 22, 2022
- 2 min read
Updated: Oct 25, 2022
Welcome to Binge-worthy Books, where we review the title for that month's edition of our new Streaming Book Club, a book club around those titles that were later turned into hot new streaming shows or movies. So sit back and relax. We're getting ready to binge another book: The Adventures of Arsène Lupin by Maurice Leblanc.
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The Adventures of Arsene Lupin, Gentleman Thief
by Maurice Leblanc
Book Summary
The inspiration for the hit Netflix show, Lupin, Arsène Lupin is charming, clever and bold. A master of disguise, he steals from the rich, he outsmarts the police and he’s generous to those in need. And above all, he never takes himself too seriously. This French Robin Hood has charmed readers for generations and the stories about his dazzling escapades have been adapted countless times for television, stage and film.
Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket-sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition of The Adventures of Arsène Lupin, Gentleman-Thief is translated from the French by Alexander Teixeira de Mattos and features an introduction by Emma Bielecki.
In the opening stories, Lupin is arrested, only to engineer his own incredible escape. What follows are wonderfully entertaining and action packed stories that finish with a brief encounter with none other than Sherlock Holmes. These stories were first published together in 1907 and this edition of the gentleman thief's very first adventures is the perfect place to start exploring his world of daring escapes, cunning disguises and ambitious heists. -- Publisher Description
The Netflix Documentary Series: Lupin
There is oh, so much I could say about both Arsene Lupin and the series, both with spoilers and without. Let me sum it up this way: The original Arsene Lupin series was created as an answer to the Sherlock Holmes craze that had finally reached the mainland and on the heals of a hot court case dealing with a gentleman thief and his crew while the series Lupin is about the son of a Senegalese immigrant that tries to prove his father was framed all the while idolizing the fictional character of Arsene Lupin to the point where he becomes the modern embodiment of him, even recreating some of his famous fictional capers in "real life." Both are very French and both are about so much more than the thefts that are perpetrated. Very multilayered and brings to light a number of societal and cultural issues, if you know where to look. Did I mention that Arsene Lupin is pretty much a Sherlock Holmes turned thief who not only is a master of disguise and deduction but also has gotten the best of the real Sherlock Holmes? Your only real decision here is whether to read/watch in the original French or use the dubbed/translated versions.
Discussion Questions
Because some of these questions might contain spoilers, we have placed the questions in expandable fields. Simply click on the type of question you are interested in reading and it will open up for you. Have fun discussing.
Click For Questions On The Book
Is there a story in this collection that struck you as particularly good / bad / relatable or not?
This is a translated work from the beginning of last century (the first having been published in 1905). Do you believe the translator was true to the original? Do you think, if you speak/spoke French, that you would be interested in it in its original language?
Arsène Lupin was created to take advantage both of the Sherlock Holmes craze as it reached France and the then French obsession with gentlemen thieves (there had been one recently in the court that had caught the public eye and imagination. Leblanc even was touted as the French Conan Doyle (probably a rumor started by his publisher). What do you think of this comparison? Do you think it an adequate parallel?
Maurice Leblanc writes at a time when the wireless telegraph had only been around for a few years. He also writes of handwriting analysis and a few other at the time breaking edge technologies. Discuss
Do you think Lupin intended to be captured in the first story, given what you understand from subsequent ones?
Given the ending of the first story, what were your thoughts on our narrator suggesting he and his fellow passengers banning together to investigate the presence of Lupin and his thefts? What did you think of it before the reveal?
There is often a big reveal both of solution and of character. Did you guess correctly? What are your thoughts on this sort of ending?
What did you think of Arsène Lupin warning the Barron in advance in the second story?
Discuss Lupin's use of disguise
In The Escape of Arsène Lupin, Lupin drastically alters his physical appearance. Discuss the psychological impacts of changing yourself, outside &/or in.
Arsène Lupin was captured by a Lupin Impersonator! Discuss
Then-current historical figures such as the king of Denmark who passed just months before publication of The Queen's Necklace seem to crop up in Leblanc's stories from time to time. What are your opinions on real historical people in fictitious works? Good? Bad? Add realism? Take you out?
A playing card takes on a special significance in one of the stories. Did you buy the solution?
They changed his name for copyright reasons, but Sherlock Holmes is on the case! Discuss. Do you believe how it played out?
Click For Questions On The Series
What parallels do you see between the book and the show?
Questions of race and class are brought up. There was even some discussion of those in regards to gender (such as the introduction of Diop's father to the wife of his new employer). What are some of the instances you saw? What were your thoughts on the matter?
What about issues of immigration? France has been front and center in the spotlight before in particular for discriminatory issues in regards to immigrants and minority classes. How do you see this playing out? Who do you agree with?
What is your opinion of casting? Do you think that the characters worked well together?
How do you think Assane became such an accomplished thief?
Have you ever had someone, real or fictional, you looked up to so much that you modelled yourself, your career, your outlook around? Do you think it reasonable to have a fictional character as a role model?
Do you believe that it would be that easy to infiltrate a famous institution such as the Louvre?
The theft from the Louvre is such a small part of the first season. What did you think when you realized it was only the nudge that got the ball rolling? Do you believe the series worked as such?
How do you think the modern version of Inspector Justin Ganimard, Police Commissioner Gabriel Dumont, compares to the original?
They end the season with the kidnapping of Diop's son. This is a loose interpretation of The Mysterious
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