I’ve just started this book; I’m not familiar w/the author, although he’s a Pulitzer Prize winner. He’s author of “The Virgin Suicides” as well.
So far, it’s a very interesting book. It’s fiction, but I’m wondering how much of it may be parallel to his own real life…does anyone know? It’s about a transgender (female to male), one caused by chomatic/DNA anomalies, but it’s really so much more the bigger picture of family relationships and inter-relationships.
At any rate, has anyone else read this book? What did you think of it?
My book group read it. I thought it was a pretty good read. However, it’s more about Greek immigration and the evolution of Detroit, than it is about transexuality. I hate to say too much. I’d hate to give anything away. How are you enjoying it so far? I was stunned when I heard it had won the Pullitzer.
I read it too when I was on holidays in Greece last year. It was a good read and interesting too from an historical point of view. I liked the main character and thought that the transgender issue was dealt with sensitively and humanely. the grandmother got on my nerves a bit though - particularly later in the book. Still I thought it was a really meaty story of a family, warts and all, through three generations told with humour and it was touching without being sentimental. Overall I’m not surprised it won the Pulitzer because it is a well-written and imaginative book. Also, as was already said, it tells the history of an immigrant family to America, the history of Detroit, and the story of an American teenager trying to deal with a difficult realisation (and normal everyday teenage things too). Surely these all make it a reasonable candidate for the Pulitzer…
Anyway I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Though I don’t have anything to add that hasn’t been said, I would like to say that I, too, thought it was fantastic. I couldn’t put it down.
I hope you enjoy it. I wish I could answer your question about the author, but, honestly, the question of the story being a parallel to his life never occurred to me.
ZJ
Yes yes, I am enjoying it! And yes, it’s more the bigger story of the family and their history and emigrating to the US, etc.
The reason I asked if it was maybe an autobiographical novel was that I looked at his picture on the back of the book and he looks just like he describes Cal. 
Actually, it also has a sort of auto-bio tone to it, at least to me, so far. I think I will have to check out “The Virgin Suicides” too now.