Rating: 
Summary: One of the best novels to come out in the past decade
Review: Up there with Dave Eggers "Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius" Donna Tartt's "Secret History" and, of course, the "Virgin Suicides" (is it a coincidence all 3 authors released new books in the last 12 months?) I've been hesistant to read any of their new efforts, but after this phenominal, lyrical and utterly believable tale, I'm encouraged. It's a beautifuly written piece of literature, proving once and for all the talent of this writer.
Rating:
Summary: An Uncommon Read
Review: I was describing this book to a reading group yesterday. Just four of us, having lunch. There seemed to be a slight cringe factor at the subject matter. I shrugged this off, thinking oh well, they will miss out on an excellent story, told by an extremely talented writer. This tale is told with great sensitivity, humor, and compassion. A baby girl is born, a teenaged boy is reborn. An adult male finds a friend. The story of the immigrant grandparents was a necessary prelude to understanding Cal, and I'm glad Eugenides did his research and wove the history into the book. Such exceptional insights into the ethnic family relationships and foibles. I learned a great deal about herophraditism, and the psychological studies of the 1970's. Whew...cannot seem to express my thoughts here. Get this book; it's great.
Rating: 
Summary: Middlesex, by Jeffrey Eugenides
Review:
Middlesex is Eugenides second novel, following the success of The Virgin Suicides in 1993.
First, let’s get one thing out of the way: the protagonist in this book is a hermaphrodite. Cal Stephanides has a penis and a vagina and that’s, well, kind of creepy. At the same time, it provides a dramatic pull that keeps us going in a sort of guilty urgency to get to the ‘dirty parts’ – that is, we all want to know exactly how the plumbing works. In this way the novel is similar to Katherine Dunn’s Geek Love, which also plays on our morbid curiosity but does so with empathy and care for her characters.
The writing in Middlesex is fresh and provocative, if not as audacious as Dave Eggers or as graceful as Jonathan Franzen. Eugenides proves himself a capable storyteller in his sophomore novel. Structurally, the narrative has three parts: the story of Cal’s ancestors immigrating from Greece, Cal’s adolescent coming-of-age story, and his middle-aged love story. The latter is told in the present tense and layered on top of the first two, doled out in installments during breaks in the action; it’s an effective way to weave the narrative together and bring out the novel’s themes.
Ultimately, Middlesex is about identity in modern society: cultural identity, gender identity, and personal identity in a relationship. Perhaps that’s why Cal’s coming-of-age story is the most compelling; adolescence is after all the crucible where our identity is formed. For Cal – an adolescent with one foot on each side of cultural and gender gaps – it is no less than terrifying.
In Eugenides’ hands, Cal is an incredibly powerful instrument to examine how we think about ourselves. The choices that the protagonist makes reveal the arbitrary nature of things we hold sacrosanct. What, after all, does it mean to be a man or a woman? What does it mean to be an American or a Greek? The lessons here cannot be reduced to banal aphorisms. We’re not all the same on the inside. We’re not products purely of nature or of nurture. The struggle that we all make to carve out our place in the world is lovingly rendered in this enjoyable, if quirky, novel.
Rating: 
Summary: The Audiobook
Review: I am actually not finished with the audiobook version of Middlesex but I wanted to comment on the narrator. He's actually pretty painful to listen to. His voice is so low and husky, it's hard to hear in the car. Also, when he does a woman's voice you can't help but picture a man in drag. When he does the voices of the Greek-Americans in Detroit he makes them sound ...(imagine Mel Brooks reading this part). And the Greek pronunciation isn't terrible but he's still anglicizing the Greek (a greek delta is pronounced like "th" in "them"). I pay so much attention to the voice that its hard to listen to the words!
Rating:
Summary: A REAL Novel by a Great Writer
Review: I have to admit, when I saw this book in the bookstore and read the jacket, I had little interest in the subject. I had, however, heard great things about "Virgin Suicides", so I thought I would give it a shot. This is one of the best books I have ever read. Jeff Eugenides is a supurb story teller, and a perfect writer. His story moves along very well, the history is interesting and educational, the characters are well developed and facinating, and his prose is impressive, without being overdone or detracting from the story. It is obvious Mr. Eugenides spent a lot of time researching and writing this novel. His narrative gets the reader deep in the mind of the lead character. If you want to read a real novel, full of life, buy this book. If books were priced by the their content, Middlesex would be worth thousands.
Rating:
Summary: Humanity, History and Humor
Review: Who would think that a book written abut the life and family history of a hermaphrodite could be so compelling? Although I admit my first attraction to the book was a morbid curiousity of the physical attributes of hermaphrodites, I quickly began to connect with the protagonist in ways I would usually not admit! The main character is not a freak of nature, but quite possibly (as the author intimates) more advanced on the evolutionary ladder than most "uni-sexual" human beings. Afterall, don't we all possess both male and female characteristics in one way or another?
Characterization isn't the only praiseworthy facet of this book. The author teaches us about history that has been forgotten or that has been over-shadowed by a "more American" point of view. Paralleling the Turkish invasion of Smyrrna with racial riots in Detroit, Eugenides illustrates the animal nature of men, the tunnelvision of one's point of view, and gang mentality. Fire symbolizes change, both in the direction of the character's lives and in the course of history itself.
Middlesex is an excellent read, and I recommend the book for people like me who enjoy learning while being entertained.
Rating:
Summary: Better than Virgin Suicides but mis-titled
Review: This a beautiful book. Three generations of the Stephanides family are traced, leading to the main character, Cal, and his rebirth. However, in this 500+ page book, Cal isn't even born until near page 350. This leaves very little space to explore what Middlesex actually means. Much more time, and beautiful langage, is expelled getting there. I agree with the other reviewer that the book should have been more than I. I'd have recommended a book on each generation. It's also clear that the author has only a surface understanding of intersexual people, resorting to dictionary definitions, in contrast with his understanding of Greek culture. There is no reason he should have needed to research the former, but it was obvious that he tried to and many passages read almost verbatum to a couple of popular intersex works. I read this work because of the focus on a non gender-normative main character, but I found that I most liked the part of the book before he was even born. It rushed after that.
Rating:
Summary: You will be glad you met Callie/Cal.
Review: Another reviewer has likened this work to that of John Irving, and I would have to agree. Like Irving, Eugenides introduces us to an offbeat and unusual cast of characters, the main being Cal/Callie a Greek/American hermaphrodite being raised as a girl in a hilarious, lovable, ethnic family. This novel is rich with detail, history and research, it's easy to get lost in this big, meaty book. I especially loved the scenes where the young Callie heads out alone to find her father during the Detroit race riots, hilarious and touching. The characters are wonderful, beginning with Cal's grandparents (whose marital secret sets the stage for Cal's turmoil), believe me, you've never met another family quite like this one. Cal will go down in my list of unforgettable characters, you truly care about her/him and will miss him when the book ends. Don't let the unusual subject matter turn you off, this is a book worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: Creditable second work
Review: I consider Virgin Suicides, the author's first book, to be one of best books written in decades. This, his second book, is also well-written and contains some of the same dry wit that makes you unsure whether to laugh or cry. However, I couldn't help but feel that, as a reader, I was left dancing on the surface instead of being plunged into the depths the way I was with Suicides. One problem was that the book simply covered too much. It actually had the makings for two separate works. One, the fictionalized saga of the author's Greek imigrant grandparents. The other, the story of the Hermaphrodite Cal ne Calliope. While one led into the other, I simply never felt that I spent as much time with the main character as I did with her/his grandparents. Also I didn't like the way the grandmother,Desdemona, simply disappeared for much of the last half of the book. This was explained, but I couldn't help but think it was more of a convenience for the author. Greek mythology and irony were nicely woven into the story, but unfortunately, the mythology had to be explained for a less enlightened audience (of which, I must confess, I am one), and the irony had to be bluntly pointed out due to the length of the novel causing us to forget some of the early details. This all tended to interrupt the flow. However, had Eugenides first novel not been so exquisite, I would probably not have had such inflated expectations for this book. In short, if this is the first book you're reading by the author, I'd be surprised if you weren't very impressed. But please do go on to read Virgin Suicides. You' won't regret it.
Rating: 
Summary: hype
Review: yes, there is genius in lines, a tour-de-force in providing us with greek tragedy, but all in the service, not really of the book, but in the service of the author. We are looking at a writer, saying "Look how smart I am." This book is patched together. Like another reader said, read the New Yorker extract.
|
