An American man moves to Germany and falls in love with a married Norwegian woman in his language class. Their contrasting artistic tastes foretell a fundamental rift.

In 1988 Germany, a teenaged girl likes to probe her uptight family members for the rich stories they carry from their past. When her aunt—the black sheep of the family—comes to stay with them, the girl is fascinated by her free-spirited persona and the family secrets she may hold.

On a ship heading for America, a young Jewish girl, having spent her childhood during World War II, is determined to have her first kiss before she reaches the other side of the Atlantic.

The friendship between two college students is based entirely on dislike and desperation - but also need. One has an eating disorder that she needs help overcoming, while the other desperately wants access to luxury and wealth. As they grow closer, secrets and lies threaten to ruin their relationship.

Using the pension from their beloved father, three German sisters stay at a boarding house in France and pretend to be wealthy ladies. The trio spot a handsome Englishman, and the eldest girl delicately crafts a story to prevent him from discovering their impoverished upbringing.

Extreme hunger takes over the lives and sanity of two girls living in Germany's time of war.

A young American woman visits her lover in Austria, torn between her passion for him and his Nazi-aligning values. Her routine visits with him and his sister occur during historical annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany.

A Portuguese girl in Hong-Kong finds her circumstances suddenly changed with the onset of the Sino-Japanese War, and struggles to find her way out of China despite the ubiquitous presence of the Japanese officers and spiteful former lovers.

A trio of two Europeans and one American, embark on a casual trip to the Italian countryside that becomes engrossed in contemplating what it means to be American.

A private schoolteacher in America invites a friend and fellow European exile to her school dinner. In a setting of wealth and prestige, she witnesses how the former countess maintains a façade of class and poise despite her deep suffering.