Better Reading Preview: The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston

Better Reading Preview: The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston

The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife is a warm, life-affirming debut about a bizarre case of mistaken identity that allows a lonely old man one last chance to be part of a family.

Frederick Fife was born with an extra helping of kindness in his heart. If he borrowed your car he’d return it washed and polished, with a full tank of petrol. The problem is, he has no one left to borrow from. At 82 he’s desperately lonely, broke and on the brink of homelessness.

But Fred’s luck changes when, in a bizarre case of mistaken identity, he takes the place of cranky Bernard Greer at Wattle River Nursing Home. Suddenly he has a roof over his head, warm meals in his belly and, most importantly, the chance to be part of a family again.

Fingers crossed his poker face is in better nick than his prostate or the jig is up.

As Fred walks in Bernard’s shoes (and underpants), he discovers more about the man’s past – and what it would take to return a broken life to mint condition.

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

We have 30 copies of this book to give away. For your chance to Preview this book, click on the link and fill in the registration form.

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This Preview sign-up period has now closed. Keep an eye out for future Previews being announced!

Better Reading Preview: An exclusive chance to read and review free books before anyone else

We invite our trusted community to engage directly with the nation-wide conversation about books by registering for Preview, our new crowd-sourced book review platform. Due to the insight and perceptiveness of our readers, we are launching a platform that allows your voice to be heard.

How do I express interest in reviewing a book?

Like us on Facebook AND subscribe to our newsletter (if you haven’t already!) to hear about the next Preview campaign. You must subscribe to our newsletter to hear about the latest Preview campaigns.

When a campaign is launched, readers will have 24 hours in which to send through their expression of interest, by filling in the registration form above. After 24 hours, Preview readers will be randomly selected from the pool of those who expressed interest in receiving and reviewing a free advance copy of the specified book. Usually these advance copies are printed three to four months before they hit bookshops, making Preview a great way to find out about upcoming titles before anyone else.

But be warned – there are only limited copies of each Preview book available for review.

You will only be contacted if you were successful in being selected.

When you register you are expressing interest for the following:

A free advance copy of the specified book sent to your postal address, in exchange for a brief review of the book that may be used for promotional purposes by Better Reading and the relevant publisher.

Important details:

– We need all your details, including your email address and postal address, for your expression of interest to be successful.

– Preview is currently only open to Australia-based readers.

– A successful registration to review a Preview book is for that single title, only. With every new Preview book announced, you will need to express interest again.

– When announced, Preview expressions of interest are open for 24 hours.

– Better Reading and the relevant publisher will never share the details provided by Preview reviewers for any purposes beyond the relevant Preview campaign.

– Preview demand is very high, and there are only limited spots available for each title. To keep things fair, if you fail to provide a review for a Preview title on two occasions, you will unfortunately not be selected for future Preview titles.

What happens after I express interest?

If you have been successful, you will receive a confirmation email shortly afterwards from Better Reading. This will contain a review deadline and a link through which to submit your review. It will also contain other details on the reviewing process.

About your Preview review:

– Preview reviews may feature on the Better Reading website and the Better Reading Facebook page. The relevant publisher may also use the reviews for promotion. When reviews are used for promotional purposes, each reviewer will only be identified by their first name and Australian state. Reviews may be edited slightly, just for the purposes of brevity and clarity.

– Social media posts about Preview may be shared by Better Reading on its social media channels and/ or website.

– All Preview reviews must be no longer than 200 words and must be received by the deadline specified in your confirmation email. You will generally have four weeks to submit your review, from the time you receive your book.

– We want you to have fun with Preview – post photos of your book on Instagram or Facebook when you receive it, and when you’ve read it, share your thoughts using the hashtag #BRPreview. Be sure to tag Better Reading in your posts – we love to hear from our readers! And if you have a Goodreads account, we encourage you to share your reviews there too.

Reviews

Sincere and Heartfelt: Read an Extract from The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston

Review | Extract

10 July 2024

Sincere and Heartfelt: Read an Extract from The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston

    Warm, Life-Affirming and Endearing: Read Our Review of The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston

    Review | Our Review

    9 July 2024

    Warm, Life-Affirming and Endearing: Read Our Review of The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston

      Your Preview Verdict: The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife

      Review | Preview

      27 June 2024

      Your Preview Verdict: The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife

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            Publisher details

            The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife
            Author
            Anna Johnston
            Publisher
            Penguin
            Genre
            Fiction
            Released
            02 July, 2024
            ISBN
            9781761347597

            Synopsis

            Frederick Fife was born with an extra helping of kindness in his heart. If he borrowed your car he’d return it washed and polished, with a full tank of petrol. The problem is, he has no one left to borrow from. At 82 he’s desperately lonely, broke and on the brink of homelessness.But Fred's luck changes when, in a bizarre case of mistaken identity, he takes the place of cranky Bernard Greer at Wattle River Nursing Home. Suddenly he has a roof over his head, warm meals in his belly and, most importantly, the chance to be part of a family again.Fingers crossed his poker face is in better nick than his prostate or the jig is up.As Fred walks in Bernard’s shoes (and underpants), he discovers more about the man’s past - and what it would take to return a broken life to mint condition.Bittersweet and remarkably perceptive, The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife is a feel-good novel about forgiveness, redemption and finding family.
            Anna Johnston
            About the author

            Anna Johnston

            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 life-long passion for screenplay, theatre and creative ageing.

            Books by Anna Johnston

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              The novel is a touching story of forgiveness and rediscovering family values. Just as the player in Geometry Dash has to overcome each level with constant effort, Frederick’s journey is also a battle with the “obstacles” of loneliness and loss. The book brings depth, like the feeling of completing a challenge after so much effort.