The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife

For readers of Remarkably Bright Creatures and The Pilgrimage of Harold Frye, a warm, life-affirming debut about a zany case of mistaken identity that allows a lonely old man one last chance to be part of a family.

Anna Johnston is a former baby, aspiring octogenarian and emerging Australian author with a love for the heartfelt and hilarious. She lives in 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 activities coordinator, taking great delight in shaking up the usual program. Anna also developed an award-winning local government program teaching older widowed men how to cook. When injury left her unable to continue working in aged care, she began to write about it, channeling her love for older people onto the page. During the pandemic, Anna completed several novel writing courses with the Australian Writers’ Centre, where her debut novel, The Borrowed Life of Bernard Fife, was born. Anna has enjoyed a lifelong passion for positive ageing, creative writing, theatre, screenplay, and all things Australiana.