“I was born twice: first, as a baby girl, on a remarkably smogless Detroit day in January of 1960; and then again, as a teenage boy, in an emergency room near Petoskey, Michigan, in August of 1974.”
This is the first sentence in Middlesex.
I remember seeing Eugenides discussing his book on Oprah’s Bookclub in 2007 – it was her pick that summer – and feeling so excited to read it, but I stopped reading a few chapters in for a reason I can’t remember. Fast forward to 2020. It’s the height of the pandemic, I’m rediscovering my love of reading and decide to give this a reread. It is now in my top ten. This is such an epic story told in the first person, as Cal Stephanides “recounts how 5-alpha-reductase deficiency, a recessive condition, caused him to be born with female characteristics.”
Cal’s grandparents Eleutherios “Lefty” and Desdemona Stephanides flee their village in Asia Minor during the Greco-Turkish War and set sail for the United States. The story follows their family’s life in Detroit and the declining relationship between Lefty and Desdemona. They share a secret that is eating at Desdemona and could explain why Calliope is not like other girls?
I love how Eugenides weaves this family saga through real-life events like the Watergate scandal and the Detroit Riot of 1967, to name a couple. I especially enjoyed his commentary on growing up Greek and his references to Greek mythology as he explores family, the American dream, gender identity and rebirth.
My love for this novel is why I encourage readers to revisit books they DNF’d. You never know what might resonate with the older you.
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