Helge Block is old. He barely manages to draw a handful of fish from the sea, and he and his son, Jonas, eke out a precarious living. And yet they live a happy life in their fishing hovel at the edge of the village, for old Helge is a dreamer. He knows how to spice up a meagre herring with images and phrases until the fish lands as sumptious luxury dinner on Jonas’s plate. And when Jonas once in a while is afraid, Helge plays down the evil so convincingly that Jonas bursts into happy laughter.

But Helge has a dream: One day, he wants to surprise his boy with a catch that will make the whole beach shine with fish – he wants to reach down “the silver from the sky” and make poverty end for good. And so, one night, he leaves, never to return again.