A story about the passengers of the inland waterway Heinävesi. Salli, the daughter of the captain, dreams of an acting career and joins a performance by a theater company traveling on a ship.
In the last days of World War 2, people of various ethnic background meet in a Polish military hospital in a small German town, whereas a Nazi SS division hides in the local forests and tries to move westwards.
Mr Pastry's social climbing daughter, president of a society for the rehabilitation for ex-convicts, hides the fact that her father is himself a prisoner.
Ghosts and premonitions; a married woman discovers the true love of her life while being plagued with supernatural phenomena relating to her imminent murder.
When the great potato famine hits Ireland, the diaspora begins as thousands emigrate. Among those leaving the Emerald Isle is Katie O'Neill and her husband, who decide that the promised land is South Africa and make their way there.