Reviews for the novel have been decidedly positive. Many critics praise Eugenides' characterization of Cal. Max Watman, in New Criterion, writes that in this “first-rate” novel, “Eugenides normalizes the experience of a hermaphrodite and turns Cal into something other than a freak.” James Wood, in the New Republic agrees, insisting, “Eugenides makes Calliope credible: she is not merely a theme.” Joanne Wilkinson, in her review for Booklist, concludes that Eugenides “proves himself to be a wildly imaginative writer” and finds “perhaps what is most surprising about [his] offbeat but engrossing book is how he establishes, seemingly effortlessly, the credibility of his narrator.” He is, she claims, “likely to hold readers in thrall” with “a sure yet light-handed touch” in his “affecting characterization of a brave and lonely soul and [his] vivid depiction of exactly what it.....
This is a free excerpt of 135 words. This section contains 537 words. This
study guide contains 24,940 words (approx. 83 pages at 300
words per page).
Read the rest of this Literature Guide with our Middlesex Access Pass.
