SteffieB Posted October 9, 2007 Share Posted October 9, 2007 Howdy -- just wondering if anyone has read this book? I looked and looked and can't find a post about it..and I am dying to hear someone's opinion! I have read such great reviews all over for it, but the one person I know personally (a professor) who read it said it could have been much shorter:blush: Thanks very much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carm Posted October 9, 2007 Share Posted October 9, 2007 hi- i'm about half way through middlesex and i think its great- it could be shorter but the descriptions are done really really well- its written with a low key sense of humor- im really enjoying this one- carm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteffieB Posted October 10, 2007 Author Share Posted October 10, 2007 Thanks very much, Carm:) That's pretty much what I'd heard and read, and I'm happy to get it confirmed by a source I trust. Stef Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haniirani Posted October 11, 2007 Share Posted October 11, 2007 I've been meaning to read this but it's always on loan in the library. So I have to wait patiently..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteffieB Posted October 11, 2007 Author Share Posted October 11, 2007 I think I'm going to get it on tape! It'll be fun if we get it at the same time and compare notes:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carm Posted October 11, 2007 Share Posted October 11, 2007 :mrgreen:youi're very welcome steffi- tell me what you think when you read it- carm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louiseog Posted October 11, 2007 Share Posted October 11, 2007 I loved Virgin Suicides and have Middlesex on tbr. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz Posted October 12, 2007 Share Posted October 12, 2007 I have Virgin Suicides waiting on the shelf. I've heard lots of good things about that particular book and others of Eugenides'. Seems to be one of those authors I should try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteffieB Posted November 4, 2007 Author Share Posted November 4, 2007 So I'm halfway through the audiobook version, and I'm finding it riveting. As I keep telling my Greek friend, as I ask her about some of the Greek themes, it's more of an historical book about a family's emigration to America and their life and assimilation here, than about the hermaphrodite topic. The reader is just fantastic, too, he makes it that much more interesting. Anyone with an immigrant background (my father and his family are from Germany) will identify with the story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted August 8, 2008 Share Posted August 8, 2008 I didn't like Virgin Suicides, neither as a book or a film, partly because I thought all of the girls would commit suicide one by one, and I was sort of disappointed to learn that first one girl would do it and then all of the others as a group. It would have been much more devastating the way I thought it would be, and I was curious to find out how they all could manage to do it one by one and get away with it, and how the parents would react and try to stop it. However, I really enjoyed Middlesex and I had to buy it for myself after reading it. It wasn't too long for me, I loved how the novel tells the "saga" of three different generations, the first generation's actions being the cause of future events and problems. I recommend! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jo-Bridge Posted August 9, 2008 Share Posted August 9, 2008 I really enjoyed Middlesex but ordered the hardback without realising just how huge a book it was! Definately not one for reading on the bus! i agree with Steffie I thought the immigrant experience aspects of the book were the most interesting! The idea of someone coming into your home and telling you not to use too much garlic in your food -bizarre! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shelbel Posted August 9, 2008 Share Posted August 9, 2008 (edited) I read Middlesex earlier this year and thought it was fantastic! I was completely absorbed by the story and found it very difficult to put down. I particularly enjoyed Jeffrey Eurgenides writing style and felt his use of humor helped me to digest some of the more sensitive issues of this book. Edited September 11, 2008 by shelbel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nursenblack Posted August 13, 2008 Share Posted August 13, 2008 I'm half way through Middlesex right now and loving it, but haven't had many spare moments to read the last few days. At first, I thought a complete history on the genetic mutation that made Calliope a pseudohermaphrodite would be a bit boring, but I was wrong. It has been really interesting so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carm Posted August 13, 2008 Share Posted August 13, 2008 Middlesex captivated me from the beginning- it was very well written and I thoroughly enjoyed it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smint Posted August 30, 2008 Share Posted August 30, 2008 I enjoyed it too - once I realised it wasn't a travelogue about the county where I live Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nursenblack Posted August 30, 2008 Share Posted August 30, 2008 When I finally finished Middlesex there was no doubt that it was a prize worthy work of art. It only made me wonder if Cal would ever get reconstructive surgery in the future or be happy as he was, especially after telling his girlfriend that he was a hermaphrodite at the end of the novel. He is just the kind of fictional character that you wish would go on to have a nice life after the story is over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelofboox Posted September 12, 2008 Share Posted September 12, 2008 I just finished reading this book, so came a-searching for this thread. I really liked the book (though I don't think it would get into my favourites or anything but I still thought it was great). At first the narrative kind of grated with me, especially the paragraphs flicking from one time to another or from one series of events to another simultaneous series of events explaining the current affairs of state (war, etc) but I think after a chapter or two I really got into it; I did like the writing style. I thought it was a really good length, too. There were no parts of the book where I thought the story dragged on and I was never bored. In other news, I could do with some help! I run a private book club on another forum (no plugging, really) and this is our chosen book. I'm just not sure what sort of questions I could pose/ask or what conversation I could start that might help the discussion along. Any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lauriebo Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 I read this book years ago when it was first released. Since I grew up in Detroit, I enjoyed the Detroit history in the book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crotalus_p Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 Omg I loved this book the only fault I had with it was that as soon as it ended I wanted more , it has to be one of my top 10 favourite books Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hume Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 (edited) Middlesex would be in my alternative "punch the sky" (which is how I felt) greatest list. This is not to say it couldn't occupy a place on a standard orthodox list, it's just that where books such as 1984 and others who are perennially thought of when list are compiled. Because of their subject matter and in this case the bleak way in which it's handled, Middlesex won't, automatically find a voice among the puritanical readship. But in time it will sit alongside those great books. Edited February 2, 2009 by Kell Inserted ALL the capitals! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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