If you need to use this blog to participate, I'll let you.

There is this really great project to honor the victims of September 11. Basically, for each of the 2,996 victims of the attack on the World Trade Center five years ago, one blogger will post a tribute. What a nice way to mark that day; to celebrate the lives - and not rehash the murders - of all these people. Please consider participating. I believe that there are several of you who don't have blogs. If you would like to participate and don't have a blog of your own, please feel free to use the Ravenous Readers as your forum.

Thanks!

M-Sex Ten For Unto Us A Child is Born

What did you think of the significance of both Sourmelina and Desdemona conceiving Milton and Tessie on the same night? (Particularly on a night after they had watched a graphic play based on a legendary Greek myth?) Is this central to the story, or just an "in-joke" to underline how interconnected the family ties are? Do you think, as Zizmo claimed to, that Sourmelina and Lefty may have had an intrigue?

M-Sex Nine A Rose By Any Other Name

Let's talk about the subtext behind everyone's names -- both given at birth and by the narrator.
Consider: Calliope, our narrator, is also the muse of Greek poetry. The home the family moved into was on Middlesex Boulevard. Lefty refers to a characteristic some cultures take to be evil. Desdemona is the wife of Othello (who was driven to violence in part by his love for her) in Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name. Even the folks whose names we don't know -- The Object (because she was one) and Chapter Eleven (so-called because he ran the family business into bankruptcy) -- are sly commentaries. Were there other examples of this? Are there other meanings to be found in these names?

M-Sex Eight Strong Enough For A Man ...

Cal states that, other than his attraction to The Object, he wasn't uncomfortable living as a female. Do you believe him? Were his actions concurrent with this assertion? What do you think would have happened if he never read the doctor's report?

M-Sex Seven I'll get you yet, masked marauder!

In your opinion, is there a villian in "Middlesex"? Who? Why?

M-Sex Six Sympathy for the Devil (and Everyone Else)

It could be argued that almost everyone in "Middlesex" is a victim of some sort. Who did you have the most sympathy for? Why? Is there any character for whom you have no sympathy? Why?

Great work Jenni and housekeeping

Firstly, a big THANKS to Jenni for posting our questions. I look forward to seeing what everyone has to say about the books. I assume (a dangerous word, I know) that we can expect more questions in the future from our illustrious moderator. What? You didn't realize that the discussion was going on already? Well, you can get a collection of links to all of the questions about Middlesex that have been posted so far at Readux. So go and tell us what you think. We want to hear it; it doesn't matter if you are a contributor, someone who has been reading along or just someone who stumbled on this site by accident and happens to have read the book.

Also, you may have noticed that the voting for the order of future reading selections has been removed. Or, perhaps you haven't. If you didn't notice that discussions had started, probably this didn't fly in your face as a big change. No matter. The reading selections for your future enjoyment are as listed on the right sidebar of this page. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks for joining in the fun and no matter what you have to say - agree, disagree, reiterate what other people have already said - we want to hear what you have to say about Middlesex!

M-Sex Five Careful What You Wish For

This is particularly aimed at you parents in the crowd. What did everyone think of Milton and Tessie's attempts to have a daughter? Can you trump fate? Do you think, for discussion sake, that we're meant to feel things might have been different if they hadn't tried to control the process? If you've been in a similar situation and are comfortable dishing, tell us: did you try to manipulate your child's sex? Did you feel superstitious about it? Why does Eugenides tell us this about Cal's conception?

M-Sex Four Sins of the Father

"Middlesex" has multiple protaganists. Not just Cal, but his parents and grandparents are all central figures. Do you think their stories are central to the book's success? How would it have been different if you had only known about Cal's life, without knowing about his grandparents? Why do you think Eugenides told a saga of generations, instead of one individual's story?

M-Sex Three Trustworthy?

Is Cal/Calliope a reliable narrator? There are a number of passages in which he says openly, "I don't know if this is what happened, but it's how I imagine it." (His grandparents' story, his own conception, the bootleg scene on p 110.) Given that he is honest about what he doesn't know, does that make you believe him more or less? As a reader, did you believe his account of his life? Of the way he felt as a girl? Do you believe he really didn't know?

M-Sex Two Cal .. what?

Do you think that knowing from the beginning of the book that Callie would eventually be Cal influenced your view of Callie? How would the story have been different if the reader assumed, as Callie did, that she was really a girl? Why do you think Eugenides chose to tell the story in Cal's voice at the beginning?

(Thanks to MamaC for this line of questioning!)

M-Sex One Whatcha Think?

Let the discussion begin!

The plot of "Middlesex" involves a number of hot-button political issues, as seen through the experiences of one family: incest, pre-marital sex, perceived homosexuality, etc. etc. As a reader, how did you feel as you read this book? Interested? Offended? Sympathetic? Shocked? Plain-old weirded out? Which plot line affected you the most, and why?