Rating: 
Summary: 4 1/2 * Pulitzer Prize Winner is Excellent
Review: Jeffrey Eugenides' "Middlesex" belongs to the sprawling intergenerational book genre, but he explores themes with a fresh perspective. Calliope (later Cal) is the omniscient narrator of a story that begins in 1922 Smyrna, Asia Minor and ends almost 80 years later in Berlin. Most of the story takes place in Detroit, a city that he describes with great insight and emotion. Eugenides expertly switches between the voices of the grown-up Cal and the young Calliope; therefore, we experience events as Calliope did, but with the perspective of Cal (at age 40). Calliope is a winning storyteller, observant, funny, and with realistic childhood and adolescent feelings. Throughout the book, Eugenides demonstrates that Callie's circumstances underlie experiences shared by all: Pain, love, confusion, feelings of being both the same as and different from. I think Eugenides somewhat underestimates the emotional toll that Callie's journey would entail, particularly during her long separation from her family as she makes the psychological transformation from Calliope to Cal. Usually; however, the insights and feelings are so true that it reads like an autobiography.While the story is compelling, there are some problems that interfere with a fluid read. At times, narrative transitions are handled awkwardly through either through over use of ellipses (...) or with somewhat clunky sentences: 'Milton stepped on the gas, ignoring the scarcity not only of petroleum but of many other things as well,' which breaks into a long list of scarce hope, food, phone calls, clean socks, etc. He also overplays his hand at the Greek tragic motif he is constructing ('Sing now, O Muse, of the recessive mutation'!'; though he later, in apparent contradiction, concludes that we can forge our own truer identities) and in his broad caricatures of ethnic and religious types. There's also a sly quality that sets up "surprise" situations: In the most egregious case of 'magical realism,' or just plain gimmickry, Eugenides uses the conceit of using his fictional character 'Jimmy Zizmo' as the 'real' identity of the actual character, Nation of Islam Muslim founder W.D. Farr, and the denouement concerning Calliope's father and uncle lacks credibility. Mostly though, Eugenides' story is compelling and humorous, and he masterfully evokes place and character (industrial Detroit; a hilarious indictment of an ultra-hip 1970s-era surgeon/sexologist), with a casual ease that nicely belies the serious themes. The book bears some resemblance to Michael Chabon's own Pulitzer Prize winner, "The Adventures of Kavalier and Clay." In both, the immigrant experience and the forging of a new identity are central, characters journey to find their own "American dream," and urban settings help shape their lives. While Chabon is the more nimble phrase writer, Eugenides is similarly poignant and symbolic. Like Chabon, Eugenides uses metaphor (based on reality) as he explores the ideas of being 'different,' the sometimes-artificial nature of boundaries, and the Greek notion of fate. It is an entertaining and often moving story that, despite some minor annoyances, I recommend very highly.
Rating:
Summary: Expertly Imagined
Review: "Middlesex" reads like a modern day Greek Tragedy; exploring concepts of gender, sexuality and identity on a backdrop of Greek mythology and twentieth century Greek and American history. The novel is written in the form of a memoir. The main character and narrator is Calliope. It is no accident that this character shares a name with the Greek Muse who reigns over epic poetry and rhetoric; for Cal is an excellent story teller and Eugenides a clever writer. This well placed symbolism is one of many examples where the author weaves elements of Greek mythology with elements of the characters' reality. Born an intersex child to first generation Greek-American parents, Callie is raised as a girl until a nearly tragic accident exposes her condition. Cal's life story covers his conception, birth, adolescence and rebirth. His story spans continents and travels back in time as he reconstructs his family history in an effort to understand the origin of the gene that reigns over gender and identity. This journey of self discovery starts in 1920s Greece, around the time of the Turkish invasion. Eleutherios (Lefty) and Desdamona, Cal's grandparents, flee from their small village when it was set ablaze by Turkish soldiers. They devise a scheme to gain access to a boat headed for New York City and the freedom that America insinuates. They settle in Detroit during its early motor production heydays. In addition to a silkworm box and cultural traditions from their homeland, Lefty and Desdamona bring to America the secret of their union - not only are they husband and wife but brother and sister as well. As Callie enters adolescence, she becomes dejectedly aware of her late development as a female. As she anxiously awaits the development of breast, she instinctively pursues her desires for the Object of her affections. The longer the delay in the start of her period, the stronger her insecurities with her body and her looks. After a car accident during a summer vacation with the Object and her family, Calliope is rushed to a hospital where doctors notify her parents that she has both male and female genitalia. Militates (Milton) and Theodora (Tessie) are Calliope's parents. Milton is the son of Lefty and Desdamona. Tessie is the daughter of Lefty's and Desdamona's cousin. Upon learning of their daughter's condition, Milton and Tessie take Callie to a gender identity specialist in New York City. Throughout Callie's evaluation by Dr. Luce, she is kept in the dark about the details of the condition being evaluated. After sneaking a look at her medical report when Dr. Luce wasn't present and piecing together bits of information overheard during her examinations, Callie learns the details of her situation and the doctor's recommendation to surgically alter her genitals and physically make her female. This recommendation is based on false information that Calliope provided to Dr. Luce during her psychological evaluations. Unaware that the stories she created to protect herself could in fact destroy her, Callie professed an attraction to boys although her experience with sexuality and her sexual desires were that of a heterosexual male's. The only thing that kept Cal's life from becoming a complete tragedy is his instincts for flight in a situation that would have resulted in the destruction of the self he identified with most; a mutilation of parts that are as natural to him as a penis is to a boy, a vagina to a girl. Cal's instinct for self-preservation fueled his escape from New York City and his subsequent life in San Francisco as a homeless kid, sex club sideshow, and writer. Eugenides demonstrates with clarity, humanity and insight, the complexities of gender, sexuality and identity within the context of a family history, a 1970s middleclass American social construct and an individual spirit. This is storytelling at the height of creativity. "Middlesex" is expertly imagined and is a worthy addition to America's literary canon. Highly Recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: A fantastic novel
Review: This is a fantastic novel by Jeffrey Eugenides. The physical and mental struggle of Calliope is perfectly depicted. Although it is a story, it is very close to real life. It could happen to any family. As i went through the book , I had a feeling that Cal was sitting in front of me and relating her life story. Seeing oneself as a girl till teenage and then preparing oneself mentally and physically as a man, is truly a painful experience and Eugenides has been successful in making the readers feel the pain and experience the struggle of Cal, through his writings and usage of heart touching dialouges.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: Not much like The Virgin Suicides, but has the same beautiful flowing writing that wraps you up like a blanket of dreams. One of the better books I have read lately, however it is like a pint of very very very rich ice cream. You love it, but you can't consume it all at once like the quick pleasures of The Da Vinci Code or My Fractured Life. Instead, you must savor it as you read, and enjoy it a little at a time.
Rating:
Summary: A terrific novel!
Review: From the first sentence of Jeffrey Eugenides' MIDDLESEX, I was hooked by this complicated tale of a young girl who grows into a man. The story of Cal Stephanides begins generations before his birth, in a small Greek village, when his grandparents succumb to incestuous desires. Immigration to the United States keeps Desdemona and Lefty's secret intact - until their grandchild Cal reaches puberty. Told with both humor and earnestness, the story grows more engaging with every page. The brilliance of this book emerges not from the superficial story of a hermaphrodite but from the context - historical, scientific, psychological, political, geographical - of Cal's birth and subsequent rebirth. MIDDLESEX is about much more than gender confusion. Cal's mixed gender can be taken as a metaphor for the experience of first- and second-generations born of immigrants. While the context of this story provides the substance, the characters provide the vibrancy. Cal emerges as a reliable and likeable narrator. He is sensible, good-humored, and intelligent. The spectrum of his experiences provides a smooth transition between childhood and adult, enabling the reader to embrace the character as both male and female. Cal's family is affectionately portrayed, even with their failings. (Cal's brother, Chapter Eleven, annoyed me with his name, a running gag, but even he ended up a full-blooded character by the end.) Eugenides has written an expansive, compelling book. Despite its length of over 500 pages, the novel is not a slow read - unless the reader wants it to be, to make it last. Accessible, intelligent, well-paced and plotted, it should appeal to a wide range of readers. I can't recommend this novel highly enough.
Rating:
Summary: Family saga with a twist
Review: This book has everything that--in the hands of an expert--make family sagas such engrossing reads. It's a multigenerational novel that begins in a historically fascinating time (Smyrna during the unsettled early days of the Turkish republic) and follows a rural Greek family as they immigrate to the US and create a new life for themselves. Sometimes comic, sometimes tragic, it follows them through the years as they reach for the American Dream. But there's a secret in their blood just waiting to reveal itself through its effect on future generations. This story is told from the point of view of Cal, born Calliope, in whose body the family secret manifests itself, almost as it might in a tale from Greek mythology. For Cal is a hermaphrodite--a genetic freak created by by the violation of one of the strongest and most universal sexual taboos. As Cal reaches adolescence, he must deal with his dual nature and his changing definition of who he/she is. "Middlesex" is very much a "coming of age" story, but one in which the standard rules don't apply. For most people, it's the intesexual nature of the main character that's the most intriguing thing about "Middlesex." John Money's controversial work on gender is echoed in Cal's recollections of his/her medical treatment, and echoes of changing attitudes toward intersexuality are there as well in Cal's reactions to it. For this reader, however, the gender issues were interesting but ultimately secondary to Cal's attempts to understand and accept his true nature. That, after all, is the essence of coming of age, no matter what one's gender or sexual identity. "Middlesex" was at times moving and at times downright funny. Cal's pursuit of "The Obscure Object of Desire" has all the poignancy of a first crush. The Stephanides family connection to the early Nation of Islam was pure dark comedy. Cal's days in the Haight were a wonderfully unlikely and yet uplifitng finish. The book may be long and at times convoluted, but ultimately I found it a rewarding read.
Rating:
Summary: Extraordinary story!
Review: One of the challenges faced by writers is that of making old stories seem new and strange again, and to make ordinary, universal experience seem extraordinary and particular. Jeffrey Eugendies' "Middlesex" is a perfect example of this: superficially, it is the unusual, quirky tale of a hermaphrodite, and yet it captures and illuminates the commonplace trails of growing up and sexual awakening with as much tenderness, accuracy and originality as you'll find in any contemporary coming-of-age novel. This might sound irrelevant, but I came away from this book not so much admiring Jeffrey Eugenides as liking him. "The Virgin Suicides" was a lovely, sad book, but this is far more ambitious - it's a hubristic idea that could have dissolved into a shallow vehicle for cleverness in another writer's hands, and it's a credit to Eugenides' warmth and charm that this doesn't. Eugenides is more interested in character and story than in the nature/nurture question the book inevitably raises; on this, he takes a rather safe middle ground, opting for the free will and self-determination argument. While this makes the book a little less interesting in terms of ideas, it makes it a better novel.
Eugendies' greatest assets are his offbeat altruism, his generosity, his humour, and his striking imagination. He knows how to entertain a reader, and he takes care of you throughout this sizeable read, confident that he's tapping a rich vein not only with Callie's tale of gender but with the background story of a Greek family across generations and recent American history captured via the prism of Detroit. But it is with Callie's early adolescence that this book really shines, especially in Eugenides' descriptions of her love affair with the Object - here is Eugenides' best prose, fertile, supple and evocative, clearly fired by its subject, and remarkably androgynous. While the book sags in certain parts, and occasionally falters in its own high-wire act (I found it sometimes a bit hard to picture Callie the Man after Callie the adolescent girl was so real; but then, that's forgivable, considering the enormous difficulty of such an undertaking), it's these passages that illuminate just what a feat of imaginative empathy Eugendies has achieved with "Middlesex." I'd recommend it to anyone. (...)
Rating:
Summary: Literary Symphony
Review: Reading Middlesex (Jeffrey Eugenides) is like listening to music. The words seem to dance off the page with a colorful and sweeping rhythm in the tradition of My Fractured Life. The experience is a symphony of the senses and fully enjoyable.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent sophmore effort
Review: Eugenides is a very good story teller, to mix pathos, angst, humor and intelligence in this way is very rare. As a long time reader of Irving, Updike, Roth and the like from a different generation it is nice to see young talent carrying the torch of writing great novels that peel away the layers of our society. It brings back memories of the time when it was understood that this countries wealth was not only built on the backs of immigrants, but that they also created the forces that resulted in the rapidly evaporating middle class.
Rating: 
Summary: Another disappointment
Review: This book has all the commonplace sensational ingredients of a
Jerry Springer show -- incest, the dysfunctional family, gender
confusion. Etc. My advice is to go watch a kids sports event.
You will learn more about human nature, and have more fun, than
reading another derivative work (amazing that anyone would think
this book is "original").
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