Rating: 
Summary: Gripping and touching at the same time.
Review: This is the story of Calliope Stephinedes who is born a 5-Alpha-Reductase hermaphrodite. What this means is that although he was born and raised as a female (due to his anatomy), he actually possesses the hormones that make him male.The novel starts with Lefty and Desdemona Stephinedes who are brother and sister-they flee Greece after the Turkish invasion and reinvent themselves as husband and wife in America where no one knows of their past (save the cousin they are living with). Their son marries his cousin, thus keeping the recessive 5AR gene in the family, and gives birth to Callie/Cal. The story starts with the establishment of the Stephinedes family in Detroit and gives a great mini-lesson on the history of urbanization and the roots of the civil rights movement as well as family history. Once Callie is born, the story becomes very moving as he grows and enters puberty. When he fails to develop normally as a female, his struggle to identify and accept himself is well-written. The turning points are his relationship with the "Obscure Object" (his first female relationship) and sessions with the gender doctor which ultimately determine his choice of which life to live. Great book, highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: A Great Read!
Review: This is the best book I've read in a long time! Don't let the first 100 pages deter you. The very beginning is a bit slow but the rest I absolutely couldn't put down. It reads like an autobiography and the characters are unforgettable. This is the quickest 500+ pages I've ever read.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful!
Review: I loved this book. I can't wait for Mr. Eugenides to write a third.
Rating:
Summary: A great story with great characters
Review: This was a joy to read, and difficult to put down. At first I wasn't sure if I'd believe the different genders of our narrator, a man as an adult, and a girl as a child, but Eugenedides pulls it off very nicely. But what I really loved was the set up. The author takes us through 80 years of this family's history, and even without the hermaphrodite angle, this would be a great read. The characters are wonderful, and the immigrant story is great. I was sad to see the book end.
Rating: 
Summary: Odd, Yet Compelling...
Review: What ISN'T included in this book? History, family, first love, old age, teen age, biology, marriage, genetics??? There's a sort of fascination which involves the reader in all these interesting vignettes, including the ultimate time-bomb that occurs when a brother and sister, indeed first cousins as well, marry, and it kept me turning the pages despite a bit of frustration that kept asking, "where is this going?" I will say well written and, yes, I am glad I plowed through till the end, but I will also admit to a vaguely unsatified feeling at the close of the book. Maybe I was just loathe to not know what happened next?
Not for the faint of heart.
Rating:
Summary: should be required reading
Review: This book should be required reading for high school students. It reads like a true autobiography. You feel like the characters in the novel are actually people you know. You will wish you had a better sense of your own family's history.
Rating:
Summary: I stayed home and read it all day!
Review: I couldn't put this book down. I read the first couple of chapters last night and reluctantly put it down to go to sleep. I holed up and read all day today. Don't heed the reviews of wannabe literary critics, i.e., 'stylistic tour-de-force' et al. Also, why must these folks always resort to comparing sensitive adolescent characters to Salinger's Holden Caulfield? Can't they be more original? Give it a rest, already! Take the word of someone who reads a novel for the pure pleasure great storytelling affords. Just dig in, cozy up, and prepare yourself for some great storytelling from Mr.Eugenides through the voice of Cal/Calliope. This is one of the most original books I've read in a long time. Today Cal/Calliope Stephinides has been placed on my mental list of favorite and memorable novel characters along with Jonathan from Geoff Ryman's 'Was', and Gregory Maguire's Elphaba from 'Wicked :The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West'.
Rating:
Summary: Far From Middling
Review: Jeffrey Eugenides Middlesex is a terrific novel--a big, fat, wonderful read, something you can really sink your teeth into. It is the story of Cal, or Callie as (s)he was called as a young person. Cal retraces the story of her family back to her grandparents and how certain incestuous relationships led to a genetic mutation which caused him (and it is him narrating from the present) to be born genetically ambiguous. Although raised as a girl, Cal's life as a young teen, particularly with respect to her sexual awakening, is confusing at best. Ultimately, the truth is discovered and Cal figures out how he wants to live his life and what fun it is to discover it along with him. This story is great--funny, full of great characters, scintillating dialog and brilliant prose. I will say that it starts off a bit slowly, but then takes off, you won't be able to put it down. A wonderful novel, very well done.
Rating:
Summary: A modern masterpiece
Review: Of all the books I have read this year, this stands out from the crowd. The story and characters are utterly compelling and fascinating. The way the author weaves the impact of the families peculiar genetic history through time is unique and seamless. The characters are richly detailed and expressive. I loved the story itself and watching the characters lives unfold. But the real bonus of the marvelous book is the author's beautiful writing style. It is literary and complex without being dry or sanctimonious. For example, the way he makes the rhythms and numbing repetitiveness of the floor of a car manufacturing plant come alive is remarkable. You know you are in the presence of a great writer when the description of something so mundane and industrial as a car plant leaves you in awe. The book is long and worth every page. I slowed down at the end just so I could make the pleasure of this book last. You wont be dissappointed!
Rating:
Summary: The Title Says it All
Review: I once saw geese in formation flying south, and I asked myself: "Are the cows now home? For I am in the stable, and the house is empty." Just as I was about to answer, the last geese, the runt of the litter, unceremoniously defecated on my head. Well, dear reader, that feces might as well have been the apple that struck Newton, for it resulted in the most inspirational prose written by man to date: this review.
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