The year is 1941 and Nazi Germany is at its peak. Hitler's army is storming into Russia. Sweden stands lonely and isolated while the air force is training intensely due to a coming attack. The squadron leader pushes his men at its hardest. It's a constant game with death where death unfortunately often wins.

In the Stockholm archipelago in the 1880s, Carlsson move out to an isolated farmstead to help the widow Flood with the farm. Carlsson has big plans for the island, including having paying guests in the summer but Gusten, the son of the widow, is negative. Plot by Mattias Thuresson.

An unemployed engineer wins a competition, first prize is a vacation to a luxury resort in the mountains.

Spoiled upper class girl Marianne speeds through a small village and crashes her sports car into the house of the local vicar. She will have to stay for a few days while her car is repaired. Opposites attract but what will the locals think of this odd couple who slowly realize that they are fond of each other?

A story spanning four generations.

Ingrid Eriksson, a social worker, decides to find out something about the problems facing housemaids and gets herself a job as one at the home of John Willman's family. John's son, Åke, falls in love with her and numerous complications arise before the course of true love runs smoothly.

Bragehus manor receives a new farm bailiff with new ideas on how to run a modern farm. The manor is haunted by a ghost.

A mining engineer comes to the quiet village of Nimansberg in Bergslagen and tries to persuade the farmers to invest in mining.

The Björcks are an ordinary middle-class family in a large Stockholm apartment with with two children, Greta and Ville. But the family's happiness is threatened in two ways: Greta prefers Börje Schack instead of the well-behaving Bertil. And the flirtatious Mrs. Holten tries to snare Mr. Björck.

Rönneberga is an old family manor. When Lennart Heijken is born, his proud father buys his newborn a grandfather's clock that will follow him through his life and see him become a student, an officer, a married man, and eventually an old man.

A young and spoiled aristocrat is guilty of a hit-and-run accident.

A professor suffers an accident that disables him. He struggles to keep his courage, trying to understand and solve a conflict with his wife.

Gunnar Solberg is subjected to a robbery attempt at the cafe he owns. However, he stops the robbery and gets the robber to be honorable again.

Countess Hedvig von Wärnfelt receives her orphaned niece Marianne to bring her up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. Marianne is a spirited and vibrant young girl who is also an aspiring actress. The Countess is dismayed by her uneducated behavior and treats her severely.

The young Count Per falls in love with the gypsy Elina. The old Count Nils opposes the relationship and a serious conflict arises.

The teacher Arne Markell, who is also a well-known poet, leaves his class of students. He will marry Lena and work for a new school. One of the students, Majken, misses him sincerely.

Helen Wahlman is the hostess of a luxury hotel in the mountains. Her husband fled to Chile 15 years ago, after being guilty of fraud, and was killed there. Helen's image of marriage is just dark memories. A few days before Christmas, Helen gets a shock as her husband appears from the dead at the hotel.

The prologue shows a Swedish home, where a family discusses what "a handful of rice" can mean. The action then moves to Thailand and shows the life of a Thai couple, Pó Chai and Mé Ying, and their lives of joy and hardship in the jungle growing rice.