Middlesex

By: Jeffrey Eugenides

Narrated by: Kristoffer Tabori

Length: 21 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

In the spring of 1974, Calliope Stephanides, a student at a girls' school in Grosse Pointe, finds herself drawn to a chain-smoking, strawberry-blonde classmate with a gift for acting. The passion that furtively develops between them - along with Callie's failure to develop physically - leads Callie to suspect that she is not like other girls. In fact, she is not really a girl at all.

The explanation for this shocking state of affairs is a rare genetic mutation - and a guilty secret - that have followed Callie's grandparents from the crumbling Ottoman Empire to Prohibition-era Detroit and beyond, outlasting the glory days of the Motor City, the race riots of 1967, and the family's second migration, into the foreign country known as suburbia. Thanks to the gene, Callie is part girl, part boy. And even though the gene's epic travels have ended, her own odyssey has only begun.

Spanning eight decades - and one unusually awkward adolescence - Jeffrey Eugenides' long-awaited second novel is a grand, original fable of crossed bloodlines, the intricacies of gender, and the deep, untidy promptings of desire.

Winner of the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the Audie Award for best unabridged fiction, Middlesex marks the fulfillment of a huge talent, named one of America's best young novelists by both Granta and The New Yorker.

Check out more selections from Oprah's Book Club.

©2002 Jeffrey Eugenides (P)2002 Audio Renaissance, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishers, LLC

Critic reviews

Audie Award Winner, Fiction (Unabridged), 2003

"Eugenides proves that he is not only a unique voice in modern literature but also well versed in the nature of the human heart. Highly recommended." (Library Journal )

"Not only are his interpretations of the characters astonishingly credible, but his internalization of the narrative is nothing short of amazing." (Publishers Weekly)

"A towering achievement...a story that manages to be both illuminating and transcendent...[Eugenides] has emerged as the great American writer many of us suspected him of being." (Los Angeles Times Book Review)

Captivating

This is one of the best audiobooks I have listened to in a while. The characters are realistic, the story thought provoking, and I didn't want it to end! The narrator is very easy to listen to and his range is fluid and amazing.

An interesting Read

I liked being able to peek into someone elses life who has a unique problem of sexual identity.

One the of the best!

Out of all the books I have purchased from Audible, I have to say, Middlesex is probably in the top 5. It is very good book, well written and well narrated. You will not be sorry for spending a credit on this one. Such a great story!

Wonderful, Engrossing Tale

Brilliant storytelling. I would highly recommend this story that recounts three generations of a unique Greek-American family. Even after the 20 hours of audio I was sorry to have it end.

expertly woven tale of the blossom of youth.

set across the back drop of of the twentieth century historical land scape, a must read for all ages, all genders.

Captivating but outdated

I think that this was a really important book for its time -- and it brought the intersex community a kind of spotlight in mainstream media. In many cases, the book offers a poetic and beautiful insight to the experience. However, in 2018, the book's lingo, feel, and sensitivity (in the presentation of sexuality and gender and race) at times seems outdated and clunky.

Outstanding Story! Even Better Performance!

Excellent characters and story - Outstanding performance by Kristoffer Tabori! I will be looking for anything written by Jeffrey Eugenides and definitely be listening to anything performed by Kristoffer Tabori. Many of us have missed him on the screen and welcome the chance to enjoy his talents in this venue. He did not merely read this book - but brought it to life. Simply Outstanding!

Hated the first 40% and enjoyed the last 60^

Boy oh boy, did this book drag for nearly the first half! I have wanted to read this for so long that I pushed through and eventually really liked it.

Having finished it now, I can see why the first half was needed but during listening, I did not like this book initially.

So, be warned that the first half (ish) drags and is quite boring, but it does even out and become a better book.

Excellent read

Gripping story, rich and well told with excellent narration from the main character and strong character development overall.

Not exactly what I expected

I thought this book was going to be about a hermaphrodite. Although it was, the story involving Calliope Stephanides the main character in the book does not really come into play till approximately the last quarter of the book.
Instead, the book is a saga, starting back from Cal's grandparents and their journey out of Europe and to the US where Cal's parents come into play and finally Cal and his brother become part of the book. The journey is a fascinating one and quite enjoyable.
The narrator Kristoffer Tabori did a marvelous job reading and acting out this novel. It was long, but a good story, a difficult subject that was handled well.