Follows the World War II tale of Jewish ghetto director Mordechai Chaim Rumkowski, who in an ambitious effort to render the ghetto an invaluable industrial complex makes compromises that have extraordinary consequences.

In February 1940, the Nazis established what would become the second largest Jewish ghetto in the Polish city of Lódz. Its chosen leader: Mordechai Chaim Rumkowski, a sixty-three-year-old Jewish businessman and orphanage director, and the elusive, authoritarian power sustaining the ghetto's very existence. From one of Scandinavia's most critically acclaimed and bestselling authors, The Emperor of Lies chronicles the tale of Rumkowski's monarchical rule over a quarter of a million Jews. Driven by a titanic ambition, he sought to transform the ghetto into a productive industrial complex and strove to make it - and himself - indispensable to the Nazi regime. Drawing on the chronicles of life in the Lódz ghetto, Steve Sem-Sandberg captures the full panorama of human resilience, and questions the nature of evil. He asks the most difficult questions: Was Rumkowski a ruthless opportunist, an accessory to the Nazi regime driven by a lust for power? Or was he a pragmatic strategist who managed to save Jewish lives through his collaboration policies?

A compelling tale of power, corruption and compromise from one of Scandinavia's most revered authors. In February 1940, the Nazis established what would become the second largest Jewish ghetto in Poland, in the city of Lódz. Its chosen leader: Mordechai Chaim Rumkowski, a sixty-three-year-old Jewish businessman. Mysterious, ambiguous and monarchical, 'King Chaim' forced adults and children alike to work punishing hours providing supplies for the German military. Thousands of others were transported and never seen again. Was Rumkowski an accessory to the Nazi regime, driven by lust for power, or was he a pragmatic strategist, actively saving Jewish lives through apparent collaboration? Steve Sem-Sandberg draws on genuine chronicles of life in the Lódz ghetto to capture the full panorama of human resilience, and to question the nature of good and evil.

Based on the tragic true story of a Jewish ghetto in WW2, this is an epic novel following the dark and flawed authoritarian ruler of Lodz.

In 1940, the Nazis established the second largest Jewish ghetto in Poland, in Lodz. Some 250,000 Jews were imprisoned there. The ghetto's chosen leader, Mordechai Chaim Rumkowski, realised that their survival depended upon making the ghetto indispensable, so he forced everyone to work providing supplies for the German military. Was he a ruthless opportunitst, or a pragmatic strategist? This novel draws on genuine chronicles of life in the ghetto to ask the most difficult questions about survival and oppression.

In February 1940, the Nazis established what would become the second-largest Jewish ghetto, in the Polish city of Lo?dz. The leader they appointed was Mordechai Chaim Rumkowski, a sixty-three-year-old Jewish businessman and orphanage director--and the elusive, authoritarian power sustaining the ghetto's very existence. This book chronicles the tale of Rumkowski{u2019}s monarchical rule over a quarter-million Jews for the next four and a half years. He sought to transform the ghetto into a productive industrial complex and strove to make it--and himself--indispensable to the Nazi regime. These compromises would have extraordinary consequences not only for Rumkowski but for everyone living in the ghetto.

Winner of the August Prize, Sweden’s most important literary award A Globe and Mail Best Books of the Year 2011 Title To be published in more than twenty-five languages A major international literary event “This is real literature. A great work of fiction.” —Per Svensson, Dagens Nyheter In February 1940, the Nazis established what would become the second-largest Jewish ghetto, in the Polish city of Lódz. The leader they appointed was Mordechai Chaim Rumkowski, a sixty-three-year-old Jewish businessman and orphanage director—and the elusive, authoritarian power sustaining the ghetto’s very existence. A haunting, profoundly challenging novel, The Emperor of Lies chronicles the tale of Rumkowski’s monarchical rule over a quarter-million Jews for the next four and a half years. Driven by a titanic ambition, he sought to transform the ghetto into a productive industrial complex and strove to make it—and himself—indispensable to the Nazi regime. These compromises would have extraordinary consequences not only for Rumkowski but for everyone living in the ghetto. Drawing on the detailed records of life in Lódz, Steve Sem-Sandberg, in a masterful feat of literary imagination and empathy, captures the full panorama of human resilience and probes deeply into the nature of evil. Through the dramatic narrative, he asks the most difficult questions: Was Rumkowski a ruthless opportunist, an accessory to the Nazi regime motivated by a lust for power? Or was he a pragmatist who managed to save Jewish lives through his collaboration policies? How did the inhabitants of the ghetto survive in such extreme circumstances? A critically acclaimed breakout bestseller in Sweden, The Emperor of Lies introduces a writer of great significance to American readers. The archives detail daily life in the Lodz ghetto, under the reign of Rumkowki, but it takes a writer with Sem-Sandberg’s singular talent to help us understand the truth of this chilling history.

I den polske byen Lódz ble det opprettet en jødisk getto av nazistene . Gettoen ble styrt av Mordechai Chaim Rumkowski. Boka bygger i stor grad på Gettokrøniken, et 3500 siders dokument som ble skrevet av innbyggerne i byen. Gettoen hadde 250 000 innbyggere da den ble opprettet men bare noen hundre overlevde. Sem- Sandberg fikk Augustprisen for denne boka og ble også nominert til Nordisk Råds Litteraturpris i 2010.

Das Getto in Lódz bestand von 1939-1944. Über hunderttausend jüdische Bürger wurden von dort in Vernichtungslager deportiert. Dem "Judenältesten" Chaim Rumkowski kam die Aufgabe der Zusammenstellung der Deportationslisten zu. Die Rolle Rumkowskis gilt als umstritten: War er ein Karrierist und Kollaborateur, oder gab es auch für ihn eine Grenze? Sem-Sandberg schreibt, genau um diese Frage gehe es in seinem Dokumentarroman. Er stützt sich hierbei zum großen Teil auf die 2007 vollständig veröffentlichte Lódzer Gettochronik (vgl. "Letzte Tage", ID-G 46/04) und reiht zahlreiche Einzelszenen aneinander, die der Chronologie folgen. Die Rolle Rumkowskis steht beim Lesen nicht unbedingt im Vordergrund, vielmehr taucht die (naive?) Frage auf, warum es keinen nennenswerten Widerstand gab. Angesichts der geschilderten Szenen stellt sich schnell Erschütterung ein. Ebenfalls belletristisch nähert sich A. Barth Chaim Rumkowski in "Die Fliegenfängerfabrik" (ID-A 20/11); A. Chari setzt sich in "Undermensch" (BA 4/10) mit der eigenen Rolle im Getto Lódz auseinander. Empfohlen für größere Bestände. (Claudia Bußjäger) Aus dem Lódzer Getto wurden zwischen 1942 und 1945 über hunderttausend jüdische Bürger in Vernichtungslager deportiert. Welche Rolle spielte Chaim Rumkowski, der "Judenälteste"? Dokumentarischer Roman auf der Grundlage der Gettochronik. (Claudia Bußjäger)

Do malého prostoru ctyr ctverecních kilometru v blízkosti centrálni cásti polského mesta Lodz je behem nacistické okupace umísteno kolem sto padesáti tisíc obyvatel zidovského puvodu. Zijí zde s pocity beznadeje a bezvýchodnosti v tísnivých a nevyhovujících podmínkách, které jsou navíc zostreny otrockou prací, jez je zcela podrízena potrebám a pozadavkum Tretí ríse. Autor popisuje zivot v ghettu v celkových souvislostech, do nichz pochopitelne patrí neustálý strach z transportu, fyzické tresty, nedostatek stravy, bití a ponizování. Na druhé strane si vsímá i jednotlivých postav. Tou nejzajímavejsí je nepochybne rozporuplný predseda samosprávy Chaim Rumkowski, který se stylizuje do role samolibého a vlastne i neomezeného vládce jemu svereného území. Rumkowski je arogantní, mnohdy az agresivní povahy, která kulminuje zvláste ve chvílích, kdy iniciativne plní príkazy nemeckého velení. Netusí ovsem, ze úporná snaha zalíbit se nadrízeným má dvojsecné ostrí: muze se proti nemu obrátit a dovést ho az k horkému konci. Román soucasného svédského spisovatele, novináre a kritika zachycuje zivot v lodzském zidovském ghettu v okupovaném Polsku behem 2. svetové války.