While he is working on a report about refugees stuck at the border between Vintimille, Italy and Menton (France), a journalist feels impelled to commit an act of civil disobedience: he helps an Iranian and two Sudanese to get across the border via a high-altitude climb through Mercantour National Park. All of which will lead to encounters with a wide range of men and women, from a sub-prefect and his elements of language, to a committed activist and a human-rights lawyer. As well as the highly colorful Enzo and Hubert – who live one on either side of the border.

A pared-down narrative – that studiously avoids the words alien and immigrant - in which the author describes how he volunteered to help three people he didn’t know get from Italy to France via a risky, high-altitude mountain path. The book also describes his encounter with an Italian (Enzo) and a Frenchman (Hubert), who have dedicated their lives to brotherhood, on both sides of the border.