Middlesex

“Even back then, the Great Books were working on me, silently urging me to pursue the most futile human dream of all, the dream of writing a book worthy of joining their number…”

Middlesex is a story of young girl who later becomes a man, an intersex, all because of a tricky little gene hidden in her grandparents blood. But the story is so much more than that, it is a journey through a lifetime, from escaping the Turks and Greece, race riots in Detroit, and burlesque shows in San Francisco. It's incredible because of it's expanse, of the little everyday ups and down it captures, and how of it rounds into how Cal came to be.

First off to say the story just covers so much; sexual and physical identity, race issues, and the boundaries of what love can really be. Can a brother and sister really love each other, can two cousins-one of them the offspring of the brother and sister be together? And those are just a few of the simple questions written, explored, and tasted in this story. What I love most about it is that none of them are really answered, because they are too hard to answer. Human life, especially one such as this, and spanning over the whole of three different generations, is too complex to grasp. It's like sand in your hand. And I really think that is what Jeffrey Eugenides accomplished with this book. It was like sand tricking through your fingers as you read and afterwards you're left with the feeling of it still slipping through your fingers, it is all gone but you still question it.

Calliope is a brilliant character and reading the story through her/his eyes was wonderful. There was the delicate balance of reading through the young eyes and seeing it through the older eyes. And it was just perfectly done. I cherished every little detail of the book, gobbling up the scenery and emotion in here. Nothing is lacking when it comes to writing style, Eugenides is a powerful writer. But powerful in the way that he is terrifying. Because he can make you feel so much, he can wrap his hands around you and pull you in, dancing between the words in his story.

Above all this book was splendid. If anything can be said it is that this probably isn't a book for young people to read. But it is lovely in all way. My favorite thing about it, above all, is that is spans more than you just a lifetime. Because to really understand a person, to really understand Cal, you have to know his past, present and future.

Fin.
-Keshia