“Middlesex” by Jeffrey Eugenides

We love it when we’ve read something before Jen – a rare event to be sure – but it makes us feel extra-knowledgeable about her review. And, as this is the case with her book choice this week—”Middlesex” by Jeffrey Eugenides—we can say with complete confidence that, yet again, her review absolutely hits the mark.

I am speechless. Could be the early hour. Could be the end of my mental faculties – if indeed that wasn’t years ago. It could be Middlesex.

I liked it. It wasn’t mind-blowingly fabulous. It wasn’t riotously funny or life-changing, but it did make an impression that I am hard pressed to articulate immediately. One would argue that I shouldn’t start typing until I am able, but that’s no fun.

Middlesex is a good, good book. A man looks back on the family history that has helped him reach this point in his life. He starts with the small village life of his grandparents (maternal and paternal). We travel with them to America where they set their wild recessive genes free and the results is our hero.Our hero is also our heroine. Cal/Callie Stephanides is a hermaphrodite.

What I liked about Middlesex was its non-voyeuristic presentation of Cal … ( there’s your hint where this ends up). We are not scadenfreudistic. We are in Cal’s head and it’s a terrific place to be. I really liked him. And her.

The book’s narrative is well done. I am surprised that I didn’t like it more because there is no tangible reason why I wouldn’t. Callie is great. Her grandparents are interesting and likable, as are her other relatives. The settings are both familiar and unfamiliar and well-blended. The descriptions of growing up in the 60s and 70s are right on (no pun intended).

Eugenides has a very vivid, extraordinary mind (like his stunningly beautiful, androgen-insensitive mermaid Zora) and I think therein lies my problem. Possibly spoiled by Mark Helprin (3.15.08), I expect more of the magical unreality that lies just off the page in Middlesex. It reads as a different but relatively unremarkable story in spite of its broader issues. (hermaphroditism, teenage drugs, sex, family jealousy, cultural differences, social change etc.) They all carry more weight than what is delivered. There may be too many interesting issues to develop so sadly we don’t see any fully developed.

With regard to the issue of hermaphroditism; the differences approached by my friend Norah Vincent in Self-Made Man (1.29.09) would be fascinating to hear from Cal/Callie’s perspective. If we are going to learn what this means to Cal/Callie, we need to hear more than hair sprouting on the upper lip and Adam’s apples. There is more to being both sexes than this.

I’d love to hear what happens after Callie runs away in more detail. How does she change from a girl to a man without serious psychological problems?

When we don’t hear what we want to, then Callie’s sexual organs become not as interesting as her Uncle’s racist aspirations. Other issue entrance us like the unfair practices of early car makers toward their culturally exceptional employees and the Black Muslim racism of Detroit that we briefly see through Desdemona’s eyes.

I wanted to see more of what Uncle Zizmo was transmogrifying into. How on earth did he end up where he did? What was the story with Dr. Philobosian once he reached America? How did he reconcile his grief with his new life? How did father Mike live his double life under our noses with such horrific consequences.

Middlesex is more about the periphery of Cal’s life and his/her place in it than the fact that there was a his/her issue at all. Eugenides presents both and doesn’t give us enough of either. I like him as an author and love his ideas. Hopefully we can see more of both in his next book.