Berlin, 1938. Sixteen-year-old Rudi is summoned by the Nazis and informed that he is "under surveillance" as an enemy of the Reich. The circle of Nazi intimidation is closing in on him, his family, and all German Jews. Fearing for his life, and driven by his ideals, Rudi escapes to British Palestine to become a kibbutz pioneer, drying the swamps and training in the Haganah. As the Nazi Army under Rommel's command lands in Africa, Rudi enlists in the British Army to fight the Nazis, serving as a member of the British Intelligence Service in the frontlines in Africa, Italy and Greece, participating in the battle of Anzio, and the liberation of Rome. After the Germans surrender, Rudi returns to devastated Berlin looking for his uncle, survivor of Terezin concentration camp.

Beyond Borders is the extraordinary memoir of a Jewish fighter, the story of a boy becoming man in wartime. Rudi Haymann (b. 1921), today a vibrant centenarian, shares his unique story as he ponders on war values, idealism, national identity, migration, first love, and family ties.