Paperback: Scotland Street occupies a busy, Bohemian corner of Edinburgh's New Town and number 44 has more than its fair share of the street's eccentrics and failures.
Poor put-upon Bertie is still struggling to escape his overbearing mother’s influence, his yoga lessons and his pink bedroom while wondering why new baby brother Ulysses looks uncomfortably like his psychotherapist.
The insufferably handsome Bruce has returned from London to land, on his feet and rent-free, in the arms of heiress Julia Donald.
But all is not well among the residents of 44 Scotland Street: Angus’s dog and constant companion Cyril is under threat of execution, victim of a miscarriage of justice, while pretty, indecisive Pat and hopeless romantic Matthew are on the verge of making the most terrible mistake of their lives.
Big Lou finds a new man, Matthew and Pat edge their relationship towards something more permanent although this development is not without complications, when a glimpse of someone who just might be her handsome, caddish ex-flatmate Bruce sets Pat’s pulse racing - and Domenica’s friendship with Antonia is tested to the limit when an assortment of her belongings mysteriously appear in Antonia’s new flat.
The World According to Bertie (2007) is the warm, witty and utterly enchanting fourth book in the 44 Scotland Street Novel series.
About the author: Alexander McCall Smith is one of the world’s most prolific and most popular authors. His career has been a varied one: for many years he was a professor of Medical Law and worked in universities in the United Kingdom and abroad. Then, after the publication of his highly successful No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, which has sold over twenty million copies, he devoted his time to the writing of fiction and has seen his various series of books translated into over forty languages and become bestsellers through the world.
The series include the Scotland Street novels, first published as a serial novel in The Scotsman, the Sunday Philosophy Club series starring Isabel Dalhousie, the von Igelfeld series, and the new Corduroy Mansions novels.
Alexander is also the author of collections of short stories, academic works, and over thirty books for children. He has received numerous awards for his writing, including the British Book Awards Author of the Year Award in 2004 and a CBE for service to literature in 2007. He holds honorary doctorates from nine universities in Europe and North America. Alexander McCall Smith lives in Edinburgh. He is married to a doctor and has two daughters.
Rating: 5/5
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