The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife: A Novel

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of death, child death, illness, mental illness, addiction, pregnancy loss, and substance use.

The morning after the wedding, Fred is eager to see Albert, but Patricia stops him as he makes his way to Albert’s room. An ambulance has arrived, and though Patricia claims it is headed to the room of a resident named Mabel, it enters Albert’s. Valerie exits in tears and invites Fred in to say goodbye to Albert. Fred notices how tranquil Albert appears in death.

Hannah visits Sadie’s grave and tells her of her visit with their father. She recalls the day Sadie died and the day that their father broke Sadie’s favorite cup. Sadie helped affix a band-aid to their father’s hand and told him that she forgave him.

Twelve days have passed since Albert’s death, and Fred continues to grieve, not wanting to eat. Linh tries to coax him to do so and suggests that he might like another visit from his daughter, prompting Fred to tell her of the estrangement. Linh explains that she was similarly estranged from her father after leaving Vietnam. She encourages Fred to eat and get some exercise.

He decides to take a walk, but a group of women in a knitting group call out to him.