Australian Competitions Club

Anna Johnston has channelled her respect for older people and her knowledge of aged care into a quirky and humourous debut novel.

In the last years of her grandfather's life, Anna Johnston would wheel Fred down the corridors of his aged care home, together belting out The Pirates of Penzance.

After being diagnosed with dementia, Anna changed career paths to be closer to him to ensure his final years on earth were the best - they lunched together, laughed together, and she helped him write love letters to his wife, Anna's grandmother, Dawn.

Initially she set out for a medical degree in the footsteps of her father, but she felt something was missing and wanted to be more involved in prevention rather than treatment.

"I followed my heart and followed him into the nursing home and took a job as social support coordinator," she said.

Anna changed direction and transferred to a public health and health promotion degree and after graduating developed a program teaching older widowed men how to cook.

"It was wonderful, to see more social connectedness among them and know they could now ask people over for lunch and cook a Sunday roast," she said.

"We had residents who were sharp as a tack but had physical limitations and people who were physically ok but had dementia and my job was to find ways to bring purpose and dignity."

When injury left her unable to work in aged care, Anna channelled her experience into writing, and the novel The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife was born.

A delightful, bitter-sweet, quirky tale, Anna's book tells the fictional story of generous to a fault, 82-year-old Frederick Fife.

Fred is lonely, sad, broke, hungry and on the brink of homelessness when due to a bizarre case of mistaken identity he ends up taking the place of cranky Bernard Greer at Wattle River Nursing Home and suddenly finds himself with a full belly, a warm bed and a chance to be part of a family.

Often humourous and at times heartbreaking, the debut novel has plot twists, warm relatable characters and an elderly hero, who inspires hope.

As Fred walks in another man's shoes and underpants, he discovers what it will take to return a broken life to mint condition.

Anna is currently working on her second book also set in a nursing home but with a completely different plot, although she says one of the characters from The Borrowed Life makes a cameo appearance.

We have a copy of The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston, published by Penguin Random House. RRP $34.99, to give away. Fill in your details below.

https://www.thesenior.com.au/story/8690941/how-anna-johnstons-passion-led-to-a-poignant-debut-novel/

We have one copy of The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston (Penguin Random House) to give away, valued at $34.99.


Entries close Sunday, September 1, 2024 at 11.59pm AEST.