Contents Title Page Dedication Preface 1. In Hanover Street. Watch Out, Pat, Bruce Is Back…Or Is He? 2. A Conversation with Matthew: Matthew Is Troubled by His Trousers 3. Famous Sons and Gothic Seasoning 4. Some Words of Warning from Pat’s Father 5. An Unexpected Conflict and News of Cyril 6. Angus Tells the Story of Cyril’s Misfortune 7. Irene’s Doubts Over Bertie’s Friendships 8. A Whole New Vista of Dread for Bertie 9. So Who Exactly Are Big Lou’s Big Friends? 10. Matthew Is a Sexist (but a Polite One) 11. Bruce Goes Off Flat-Hunting in the New Town 12. An Old Flame Flickers: as Well It May 13. Matthew Gets Ideas from a Blank Canvas 14. Artaud’s Way Proves to Be an Inspiration 15. A Small Sherry and a Hint of Synaesthesia 16. Domenica Is Left to Puzzle a Petty Theft 17. A Restoration in Prospect–and a New Suspicion 18. Bruce Finds a Place to Stay–Just Perfect 19. Bruce Enjoys Telling His London Story 20. Miss Harmony Has News for the Children 21. Pat Experiences a Moment of Brutal Honesty 22. A Little Argument Develops Over…Guess What? 23. An Embarrassing Trip on the Bus for Bertie 24. Angus Meets the Expert on Mistake-Making 25. The Advocate Takes a Look at the Case of Cyril 26. Bertie Plucks Up Courage and Asks the Big Question 27. It’s Never Rude to Say Things to a Doctor 28. So Who Exactly Is the New Man in Big Lou’s Life? 29. That Chap Over There–Know Who That Is? 30. Things Behind Things in the Circular City 31. Edinburgh Is Full of All Sorts of Clubs 32. Some Relative Warmth for the Ice Man 33. Old Injustices Have Their Resonances 34. Miss Harmony Has a Word in Bertie’s Ear 35. Bedrooms Are the Place for Playing House 36. What Exactly Is the Problem with Caroline? 37. A Little Bit of Bottle Bother at the Tower 38. Anyway, What Are You Going to Do, Brucie? 39. The Builders Who Began with a Bow 40. A Significant Revelation on the Stair 41. A Powerful Ally in the Campaign to Free Cyril 42. A Dinner Date with Pat…and a Surprise 43. Like a Couple of Boxers, Waiting to Land a Blow 44. Dukes Don’t All Live in Grand Houses 45. Minimalism Is Not Confined to the Canvas 46. He Wanted Her Only to Answer His Question 47. The Statistical Lady Is Not for Smiling at 48. He Wanted So Much to Be the Average Boy 49. This Is a Very Nice Place–Is It a Nightclub? 50. Bertie’s Words Stop Stuart in His Tracks 51. So Many Books Unread and Bikes Uncycled 52. It Was a Pity That Things Had Come to This 53. She Could See the Attraction–It Was the Eyes 54. It Did Not Do to Think About Sex on Heriot Row 55. What Can Be the Secret of the Tiny Stars? 56. So Many Moves–Time to Make the Next One 57. He Felt a Wave of Contentment Come Over Him 58. Patriotism and the Jacobite Connection 59. A Visitor from Belgium Is Expected 60. Does Scotland Need All This Nonsense? 61. “Middle-Class” Used as a Term of Abuse 62. It Seemed the World Was Full of Killing 63. Panforte for Bertie and a Shock for Stuart 64. You Mean You Lost a Tiny Baby? 65. It Was Almost Too Terrible to Describe 66. Speculation on What Might Have Been 67. We All Need to Believe in Something 68. How Do You Tell Someone “It’s Over”? 69. A Replacement–and an Extra Little Present 70. She Could Not Help but Hear the Conversation 71. For a Moment, Domenica Felt Real Alarm 72. “I’ve let myself down,” she said. “Badly.” 73. Julia Makes a Joyful Discovery 74. Julia Decides to Test the Temperature 75. A Prayer from a Painter in Utter Despair 76. All Hail Cyril as He Returns in Triumph 77. Olive Has News of Bertie’s Blood Test 78. Question Time for the Boys–and for Olive 79. A Confusion of Daddies at the Dinner Table 80. Julia’s Father Comes Straight to the Point 81. A Clean Break–Not Without an Argument 82. A Shopping Trip for a Special Dinner Date 83. The Matthew He Wanted Her to Know 84. A Tattooed Man Stirs Up a Painful Past 85. A Dangerous Turn in the Conversation 86. Bertie and the Baby: an Expert Explanation 87. A Fantasy Sail on That Slow Boat to China 88. Some Tea and Decency with the Fantouses 89. A Peculiar and Yet Harmless Enthusiasm 90. A Theme for the Definitive Masterpiece 91. Angus Opens His Front Door to…Trouble 92. A New Version of the Fateful Olive Incident 93. The World of Bertie–in His Own Words 94. Some Battles Are Destined to Be Lost 95. Faster and Yet Faster–with a Surge of Panic 96. Bruce Samples the Porsche Experience 97. Do We Have to Love Our Neighbour? 98. The Domenica Connection Becomes Clear 99. Mr Demarco Sees Danger for the Fringe 100. Not an Ending–More an Adjournment About the Author Praise for the 44 Scotland Street Series Also by Alexander McCall Smith Copyright This book is for Derek and Dilly Emslie Preface The 44 Scotland Street books, of which The World According to Bertie is the fourth, started as a single serial novel in The Scotsman newspaper. When I began to write this story, I had no idea that the story would continue for as long as it has; nor had I any idea that Bertie, that engaging boy of six, burdened, as he is with his extremely demanding mother, would become so important a character. I certainly did not imagine that he would acquire so many supporters–or sympathisers, perhaps. Bertie’s problem is his mother, one of those ambitious parents who sees her son as a project rather than a little boy. Such mothers are legion, and many sons spend the rest of their lives trying to cut invisible but powerful apron strings. Bertie wants only to be a typical boy; he wants to have fun, to play with other boys, to do all the things that Irene’s programme for him prevents him from doing. Instead he is forced to learn Italian, play the saxophone, and attend yoga classes for children. Bertie seems to strike a chord with many readers. Recently I was in New York and attended a lunch where the first thing I was asked was how Bertie was doing. This happens to me throughout the world: people are more anxious about Bertie than they are about any of my other fictional characters. They want him to find freedom. They want him to escape. This book continues the story of Bertie–who has, quite astonishingly, remained six for the past four volumes, even while other characters have aged and progressed. But it does not deal only with Bertie–I have carried on my conversation with Big Lou, Domenica, Angus Lordie, and all the others who have walked into Scotland Street and found their place in the saga. All of these people are, in their own way, looking for some sort of resolution in their lives, some happiness, which is what, I suppose, all of us are doing. Some of them find it in this volume–or appear to find it–others will have to wait. The whole point of a serial novel is that the future is open. If freedom eludes Bertie in this book, and if Big Lou does not just yet find romantic fulfilment, then all is not lost–there is always another chapter.