A delightful tale of Christmas in the Maigret household. Try as he might, Jules Maigret can't stay in bed on the holiday, but he does pretend to be asleep when Madame Maigret slips out to pick up hot croissants from the shop nearby. Both were hoping to "spend a quiet morning cocooned in their apartment" on Boul. Richard-Lenoir. It wasn't to be. Before the first cup of coffee has been fully consumed, there's a knock on the door. Two women from across the street need his help. At first glance, it doesn't seem to be a professional matter, but something odd happened in the Martin apartment. Pere Noel / Father Christmas may have actually visited the bedroom of 7 year-old Colette Martin. The word "delightful" fits her too! A month or so ago, she injured her leg and is currently confined to bed, but she does have a new doll. Can her story of this visit be true? Could Maigret please come to see Colette and offer us all an explanation? Librarian's note #1: this story has two English titles, "A Maigret Christmas," and "Maigret's Christmas." Librarian's note #2: this entry is for the individual story noted in librarian's note #1. Entries for collections of short stories by the author, including those in which the title story is the feature, can be found elsewhere on Goodreads. All Maigret short stories can be found by searching Goodreads for "a Jules Maigret Short Story."