The Museum of Murderers and Rescuers
Nominated for the Booksellers’ Prize 2023
This is the story of the Jewish couple Rakel and Jacob Feldmann, who are killed by the border guides they believed would save them. It’s also the story of Ellen Glott’s family, who were robbed of their home, belongings, and dreams for the future before being driven into exile to escape extermination.
Two generations later, Ellen’s grandchild is set to marry the author Simon Stranger. While he writes on a work about the Norwegian genocide, Stranger uncovers information about his own family, providing new perspectives on the darkest chapter in modern history.
The novel is designed like a museum. Each chapter is a room filled with objects, photographs, and memories. Together, they create a mosaic from the world of reality, where each component reveals a story so remarkable and macabre that it surpasses imagination. The Museum of Murderers and Rescuers is a novel about the extremes of the human experience, about guilt and responsibility, and about how sometimes we must rely on strangers to survive.