Frederick Fife was born with an extra helping of kindness in his heart. If he borrowed your car, he’d return it washed with a full tank of gas. The problem is, at age eighty-two, there’s nobody left in Fred’s life to borrow from, and he’s broke and on the brink of eviction. But Fred’s luck changes when he’s mistaken for Bernard Greer, a missing resident at the local nursing home, and takes his place. Now Fred has warm meals in his belly and a roof over his head—as long as his look-alike Bernard never turns up. 

Denise Simms is stuck breathing the same disappointing air again and again. A middle-aged mom and caregiver at Bernard’s facility, her crumbling marriage and daughter’s health concerns are suffocating her joy for life. Wounded by her two-faced husband, she vows never to let a man deceive her again.

As Fred walks in Bernard’s shoes, he leaves a trail of kindness behind him, fueling Denise’s suspicions about his true identity. When unexpected truths are revealed, Fred and Denise rediscover their sense of purpose and learn how to return a broken life to mint condition. 

Bittersweet and remarkably perceptive, The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife is a hilarious, feel-good, clever novel about grief, forgiveness, redemption, and finding family.

What a sweet story! Frederick was just was a nice person. He so desperately tries to do the right thing when he is mistaken for someone else,  but when he isn’t believed, he decides accepting their side of the story solves all his problems. What I love about the book is that it made me actually laugh out loud at the things he does to not get caught. Frederick just doesn’t want to disappoint people so when he hears nurses discussing how his behavior has changed, he tries to become more like Bernard. When it becomes obvious that Bernard and one of the lady residents had an “understanding” Frederick has to think quick to avoid more than one uncomfortable situation.  As one caregiver becomes more suspicious that things are as they seem, Frederick realizes that her life may also not be as it appears. 

I really can’t think of any part of this book I did not enjoy. It deals with the problems of growing old… loneliness, grief, loss of independence, and the family you can make when you have lost your own. 

Anna Johnston is a former baby, aspiring octogenarian and emerging Australian author with a love for the heartfelt and hilarious. She grew up in country Victoria before moving to Melbourne where she lives joyously with her husband and daughters by the beach. Anna left an imminent career in medicine to follow her heart into her grandfather’s nursing home where she became the social support coordinator, taking great delight in shaking up the usual program. When injury left her unable to continue working in aged care, she began to write about it, channelling her love for older people onto the page. Anna has enjoyed a lifelong passion for theatre, screenplay, travel, and creative writing.