Berthold (Bertie) Sidebottom lives in a block of flats, Madeley Court, with his mother Lily, who may have had an affair with the building's architect, Berthold Lubetkin, hence Bertie's name and the name of the book.
(Lubetkin really did design blocks of flats in London and the penguin pool at London Zoo.)
Lily had lived with the owner of the flats, Ted Madeley, before marrying Bertie's father, and then a Ukrainian.
When Lily is at death's door, she implores of Bertie, "Don't let them get the flat'', so he installs another ageing lady, Inna, to pose as his now dead mother.
It is unsure who "them'' means, as half-brothers and -sisters turn up, along with a supposed ex-husband of Lily, and the housing authority.
Added to the mix is Nairobi-born Violet, who lives in the flat next to Bertie, and is forging a career in international business, but uncovers unethical, if not illegal, business practices that affect Kenya.
Also, a new block of flats is proposed to be built on the cherry grove next to Madeley Court.
A petition is organised, uniting the residents, instead of them complaining about each other.
(I'm sure one of the residents is the author of A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian, the book referring to the name of Lewycka's first novel.)
Some characters are reintroduced, and backstories are repeated, but at times it is hard to keep up with everyone.
There are serious discussions of a political nature, interspersed with comedic scenes, e.g. a farcical funeral and a doomed dinner party, and some tragic elements.
Bertie shares his occupation and birthdate with George Clooney and constantly compares their lives; Bertie's spiralling down from high-end theatre productions through divorce and depression to unemployment, while Clooney's star rises.
However, many other characters seem obsessed by him too.
Bertie often quotes Shakespeare, e.g. "Death lies on her like an untimely frost upon the sweetest flower'', from Romeo and Juliet, and "All things are ready, if our minds be so'', from Henry V.
I frequently used Google Translate for the passages of dialogue in Ukrainian, Romanian and Swahili, but the context was enough in most cases to understand.
The old ladies made me smile, saying "hysterity'' for austerity, "Any Cheese'' for NHS, and "fibreglass atrium'' for atrial fibrillation.
Overall, a rollicking read encompassing a lot, but go with the flow, sit back and enjoy the ride.
- Rachel Gurney is an avid Dunedin reader.
