Here are 8 books that The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife fans have personally recommended if you like The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife. Book DNA is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Anxious People

Bethany Staer

From Bethany's 3 favorite reads in 2025.

Unknown Author Why Bethany loves this book

“They say that a person’s personality is the sum of their experiences. But that isn’t true, at least not entirely, because if our past was all that defined us, we’d never be able to put up with ourselves. We need to be allowed to convince ourselves that we’re more than the mistakes we made yesterday. That we are all of our next choices, too, all of our tomorrows.”
― Fredrik Backman, Anxious People

“We give those we love nicknames, because love requires a word that belongs to us alone.”
― Fredrik Backman, Anxious People

“This story is about a lot of things, but mostly about idiots. So it needs saying from the outset that it’s always very easy to declare that other people are idiots, but only if you forget how idiotically difficult being human is.”
― Fredrik Backman, Anxious People

“Expensive restaurants have bigger gaps between…

By Fredrik Backman ,

Why should I read it?

22 authors picked Anxious People as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The funny, touching and unpredictable No. 1 New York Times bestseller, now a major Netflix TV series

'A brilliant and comforting read' MATT HAIG
'Funny, compassionate and wise. An absolute joy' A.J. PEARCE
'A surefooted insight into the absurdity, beauty and ache of life' GUARDIAN
'I laughed, I sobbed, I recommended it to literally everyone I know' BUZZFEED
'Captures the messy essence of being human' WASHINGTON POST

From the 18 million copy internationally bestselling author of A Man Called Ove
_______

It's New Year's Eve and House Tricks estate agents are hosting an open viewing in an up-market apartment when…


If you love The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife...

Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

Book cover of The Penguin Lessons: What I Learned from a Remarkable Bird

Bethany Staer

From Bethany's 3 favorite reads in 2025.

Unknown Author Why Bethany loves this book

“the pain of parting is the toll demanded by fate for all the joy brought to us by loved ones, and I felt inconsolable.”
― Tom Michell, The Penguin Lessons

By Tom Michell ,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked The Penguin Lessons as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The unique, moving and heartwarming true story of an unlikely friendship which captured imaginations around the world . . .

'I can't remember the last time I read a book that made me smile so continuously' 5***** Reader Review
'How could a penguin transform so many lives? Read it and see. You'll not regret it' 5***** Reader Review
'Delightful, uplifting, enjoyable, fun and beautifully written' 5***** Reader Review
_______

Tom Michell is in his roaring twenties: single, free-spirited and seeking adventure. He has a plane ticket to South America, a teaching position in a prestigious Argentine boarding school, and endless…


Book cover of Lessons in Chemistry

Lisa Brandt Author Of Little Voices

From my list on women overcoming personal obstacles.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve always been interested in what drives people, their passions, and whether or not they’ve gone after them. I love it when something inspires them to emerge from a dormant state and give it their all. Show me a person who graduates from college at 85 or skydives at 99. Those people are inspiring! People go through the most incredible situations and use them as fuel for their lives. I funneled all of this into my latest novel. It’s a universal story that’s singular only to the person going through it. We can all take something positive away from this type of story.

Lisa's book list on women overcoming personal obstacles

Lisa Brandt Why Lisa loves this book

I can probably find a way to put this novel into every book category there is – I love it that much!

Elizabeth Zott is a brilliant chemist in the 1960s, a time when society accepted that only men could be brilliant or chemists. But through a series of opportunities and her defiance in the face of attempts to marginalize her, Elizabeth becomes a de facto leader of a small but mighty group of women who change their circumstances and thereby begin to change the world. 

By Bonnie Garmus ,

Why should I read it?

97 authors picked Lessons in Chemistry as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK • Meet Elizabeth Zott: a “formidable, unapologetic and inspiring” (PARADE) scientist in 1960s California whose career takes a detour when she becomes the unlikely star of a beloved TV cooking show in this novel that is “irresistible, satisfying and full of fuel. It reminds you that change takes time and always requires heat” (The New York Times Book Review).

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times, Washington Post, NPR, Oprah Daily, Newsweek, GoodReads

"A unique heroine ... you'll find yourself wishing she wasn’t fictional." —Seattle Times


If you love Anna Johnston...

Book cover of The Year Mrs. Cooper Got Out More: A Great Wharf Novel

The Year Mrs. Cooper Got Out More by Meredith Marple,

The coastal tourist town of Great Wharf, Maine, boasts a crime rate so low you might suspect someone’s lying.

Nevertheless, jobless empty nester Mallory Cooper has become increasingly reclusive and fearful. Careful to keep the red wine handy and loath to leave the house, Mallory misses her happier self—and so…

Book cover of The Winners

Katie Powner Author Of The Wind Blows in Sleeping Grass

From Katie's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author

Katie's 3 favorite reads in 2023

Katie Powner Why Katie loves this book

I’m a sucker for Fredrik Backman’s work, and this was a long-awaited and satisfying conclusion to the Beartown trilogy.

Yes, it was over 600 pages. Yes, the plot was complex and meandering. But each book in this series got better and more endearing, and I couldn’t put it down.

Backman knows how to inhabit a story, and the residents of Beartown will forever inhabit my heart.

By Fredrik Backman ,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked The Winners as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'It's often said that winners write history, but there are no winners here'

This is a small story about big questions.
It's a story about family, community, life.
It starts with a storm - and a death.
But how does it end?

Two years have passed since the events that no one wants to think about. Everyone has tried to move on, but there's something about this place that prevents it. The residents continue to grapple with life's big questions: What is a family? What is a community? And what, if anything, are we willing to sacrifice in order to…


Book cover of Lady Tan's Circle of Women

nancy5

From Nancy's 3 favorite reads in 2024.

Unknown Author Why Nancy loves this book

I'm not immediately drawn to books written about Chinese history but Lisa See writes such great characters that I was thoroughly pulled into Dr. Tan's life and times

By Lisa See ,

Why should I read it?

11 authors picked Lady Tan's Circle of Women as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'Despite the inordinate limits placed on women, See allows their strengths to dominate their stories' Washington Post
'Poignant . . . quietly affecting' Time

In 15th century China two women are born under the same sign, the Metal Snake. But life will take the friends on very different paths.

According to Confucius, 'an educated woman is a worthless woman', but Tan Yunxian - born into an elite family, yet haunted by death, separation and loneliness - is being raised by her grandparents to be of use. She begins her training in medicine with her grandmother and, as she navigates…


Book cover of There Are Rivers in the Sky

Angela V. John Author Of Behind the Scenes

From Angela's 3 favorite reads in 2025.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author

Angela's 3 favorite reads in 2025

Angela V. John Why Angela loves this book

Elif Shafak has done it again! A consummate storyteller, she immerses us in the very different stories of three individuals across time and place, their experiences linked by the part played in their respective fates through two of the great rivers of the world. This compassionate, profound novel, beautifully articulated, makes us think about the significance of belonging, displacement and much else. It makes for a compelling read and I see it as a joint first choice rather than a second favourite!

By Elif Shafak ,

Why should I read it?

8 authors picked There Are Rivers in the Sky as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

THE TOP FIVE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

This is the story of one lost poem, two great rivers, and three remarkable lives - all connected by a single drop of water.

*****

In the ruins of Nineveh, that ancient city of Mesopotamia, there lies hidden in the sand fragments of a long-forgotten poem, the Epic of Gilgamesh.

In Victorian London, an extraordinary child is born at the edge of the dirt-black Thames. When his brilliant memory earns him a spot as an apprentice at a printing press, the world opens up far beyond the slums and across the seas.

In 2014…


If you love The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife...

Book cover of The Duke's Christmas Redemption

The Duke's Christmas Redemption by Arietta Richmond,

A Duke who has rejected love, a Lady who dreams of a love match, an arranged marriage, a house full of secrets, a most unneighborly neighbor, a plot to destroy reputations, an unexpected love that redeems it all.

Lady Charlotte Wyndham, given in an arranged marriage to a man she…

Book cover of Under the Same Stars

Karol Ruth Silverstein Author Of Cursed

From Karol's 3 favorite reads in 2025.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author

Karol's 3 favorite reads in 2025

Karol Ruth Silverstein Why Karol loves this book

I loved untwisting the mystery of how the characters of the three timelines are connected. The three separate stories are equal parts fascinating, terrifying and deeply moving. The parallels of the horror of WWII, the thrill of West Berlin circa 1980 and the isolation of spring 2020 work beautifully to illuminate the human condition and how, even in the worst of times, our connections are what make us whole. It was an exhilarating page-turner!

By Libba Bray ,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Under the Same Stars as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 12, 13, 14, and 15.

What is this book about?

Instant New York Times Bestseller • A USA Today Bestseller • An Indie Bestseller • A Good Morning America Book Club Pick

"Under the Same Stars will leave you shattered and wildly hopeful." ―E. Lockhart, author of We Were Liars and Genuine Fraud

"Stirring and absolutely unforgettable" ―Samira Ahmed, New York Times-bestselling author of Internment and Hollow Fires

"Full of banter, romance, humor and a little bit of magic" ―Gayle Forman, author of Not Nothing and After Life

From New York Times-bestselling and Printz Award-winning author Libba Bray comes a propulsive historical mystery that examines truth, rebellion, reconciliation, and what…


Book cover of The Incredible Winston Browne

Katie Powner Author Of When the Road Comes Around

From Katie's 3 favorite reads in 2025.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author

Katie's 3 favorite reads in 2025

Katie Powner Why Katie loves this book

This heartfelt story was right up my alley. Small town, quirky and lovable characters, a rich and self-assured voice. A book you can't stop thinking about.

By Sean Dietrich ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Incredible Winston Browne as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Beloved writer Sean Dietrich-also known as Sean of the South-will warm your heart with this rich and nostalgic tale of a small-town sheriff, a mysterious little girl, and a good-hearted community pulling together to help her.

Folks in Moab live for ice cream socials, baseball, and the local paper's weekly gossip column. Sheriff Winston Browne has watched over Moab with a generous eye for a decade, and by now he's used to handling the daily dramas that keep life interesting for Moab's quirky residents.

But just after Winston receives some terrible, life-altering news, a seemingly mute runaway with no clear…


Book cover of Anxious People
Book cover of The Penguin Lessons: What I Learned from a Remarkable Bird
Book cover of Lessons in Chemistry

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