The following version of this book was used to create the guide: Ridzén, Lisa. Trans. Alice Menzies. When the Cranes Fly South. Doubleday, Kindle Edition, 2025.

Bo is an elderly man who has lived his whole life in rural Sweden. He grew up with an abusive and abrasive father and a loving mother. His father tried to teach him harsh lessons such as when he tried to make his son kill a mouse, and he was violent in instances like this when he struck his son when Bo let the mouse go. His father greatly valued work which is something that both Bo and his own son, Hans, value.

Bo lived with his parents until his dad got angry at him at work one day and struck him and humiliated him in front of all of the other workers. After that day, Bo made plans to find another job and move out of the home, plans that he quickly realized.

Bo’s closest friend is Ture, a man he met on the job. It is assumed throughout the novel that Ture is homosexual, and people gossip around town about this. Frederika, Bo’s wife, is cautious about what Bo’s friendship with Ture could make people think about Bo, but while she does not interact much with Ture, she does not try to stand in the way of the friendship.

As the novel opens, Bo is living along with his dog, Sixten. He is nearing the end of his long life, and he has carers come in multiple times throughout the day to take care of his physical needs. His son, Hans, is largely in charge of what Bo is and is not allowed to do, and Bo resents this control over his life. Hans wants to keep Bo safe while Bo wants to keep on doing all of the things he did through the earlier seasons of his life. Bo is planning on re-homing Sixten when the novel opens because he does not believe that Bo can care for the dog any longer. Bo has no intention of letting Sixten go.

Sixten gets lost one day when he runs after a couple of elk and Bo cannot go after him. Bo struggles to get inside and must take a short nap once he makes it in there. He does not want to tell Hans about this because he believes it will just further convince Hans that the dog should be re-homed. Eventually a neighbor helps Bo find Sixten through a Facebook post. Bo and Hans go to visit Frederika at her memory care facility, but she does not remember them.

Everyone gets worried about Bo when he and Sixten go missing one day. He had taken Sixten for a walk and fell, but his carers find him. Shortly after this, Hans has a hospital bed brought in for his father even though Bo would prefer his daybed. Eventually Hans comes to take Sixten away. Bo locks him out and hides from him, but Hans has Ingrid, a carer, come and bring him a key. Bo refuses to talk to his son in the aftermath of this event and he loses his will to live.

Bo gets worried one day when he cannot get a hold of Ture. He calls Hans who tries to get information about Ture. Ture dies, and Bo takes Hans to the funeral where they meet a man named Eskil, and Bo realizes that Eskil was most likely Ture’s lover.

Bo’s health quickly declines, and he is in and out of consciousness. They bring Sixten to him who falls asleep near Bo, and Bo dies.