Middlesex, Jeffrey Eugenides

Well ladies, this offering is an interesting one. E. (the last aupair) took this book out from the library before she left. So, being me, I read it.

This book isn't for the squeamish. In fact, it's not for the prudish either.

Middlesex is the self-told story of Calliope Stephanides, a third generation Greek immigrant. Callie, or Cal as she spends the latter half of her life, is a hermaphrodite. The story tells of her family, her grandparents and parents, and explains how her gene mutation was passed down for generations. It also journeys with Callie as she discovers her sexuality and her attraction to women. It details the medical testing and examinations she undergoes when, at the age of fourteen, her gender-confusion is discovered. The story is interspersed with Cal's current confusion with the world of dating as he meets Julie, an Asian woman he wants more than his usual shag-and-leave with.

Did I like it? Yes. I found it really interesting and rather enlightening. It was well-written and remarkably engaging. Callie/Cal became someone I was invested in, and that is an important requirement for any book to succeed. I could have done without some of the awkward sex, and to a point I didn't think it was all required. Obviously this book is sexual in nature, and as such I didn't have an issue, but my squick button was definitely pushed when Callie loses her virginity. (I suppose it would have been better if I'd liked the guy she was with. And if she wasn't so wasted.) I think the reason I liked this book so much is because the people, the situations, are all so very human in their conception and realization.

So overall: I'm very impressed. This is going on my list of books to put on my bookshelf when I come home.

(Ems, I love you, but you'd hate this book. You'd like Callie, maybe, but you'd put it down pretty much right away.)

"I was born twice: first, as a baby girl, on a remakably 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." -- Jeffrey Eugenides

Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse

My favorite Vampire, Wherewolf books of all TIME. I read these books at camp in the evenings because my room mate was large and smelly and refused to say basically anything to me and I got compleatly hooked! It follows the ill fated love story of Bella (a mortal) and Edward (a vampire.) Bella seams to be a magnet for trouble, and Edward's devotion to his one true love is amazing. The three books each go through a struggle agains a difforent enemy. They aren't exactly 'My Name is Asher Lev' but they will get you hooked! I won't say anything more about the plot lines of the storys... it's so much better to figure that sort of thing out for yourself!

The Madonnas of Leningrad

This book is definitely worth the read, especially if you like history.
We follow the heartbreaking progression of Marina's alzheimers as the memories of her past overtake the reality of her present. Her devastating disease allows us a window into the experiences of those trapped in Lenigrad during the siege of 1941. Grippingly realistic, "The Madonnas of Leningrad is a searing portrait of war and remembrance, of the power of love, memory, and art to offer beauty, grace, and hope in the face of overwhelming despair."I liked this book because it describes the trials of alzheimers in a way that is neither cliche nor depressing. Also, it centers around an area of the 2nd World War that is less typical for writers to focus on. It was very well written and the characters and deep and believable. A very good book.(Thanks for lending it to me Ebeth:))

My Name is Asher Lev, Chaim Potok

Ah, ladies: what would our little nook be without a review of Asher Lev?

My Name is Asher Lev is, quite simply, as brilliant and beautiful as the creations of the character himself. Asher is a young practicing Hasidic Jew with a remarkable talent for art. Naturally, this talent proves both a blessing and a curse, as Asher struggles with reconciling his personal desires and his inner talent with his religion.

This book is a work of art in and of itself: the portrayal of Asher through the ages, as he grows in awareness of his talent, himself, and the world around him, is remarkable and poignant. It is insightful and brings forward rare moments of absolute, transcendant, beauty.

If I was stranded on a desert island, and could only bring one book? This is the book I'd bring.

"I saw my mythic ancestor. Come with me, my precious Asher. You and I will walk together through the centuries, each of us for our separate deeds which unbalanced the world." -- Chaim Potok