Myron

One of the most unpleasant reading experiences of my life. Myron was written in the aftermath of the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that "obscenity" was not protected by the First Amendment to the US constitution. Vidal substitutes names of the Supreme Court justices for the various sexual acts and body parts. That's the novel's intellectual pinnacle. His protagonist, the transexual Myra Breckenridge transforms back into her male self (Myron) and the personas fight for control over "Myron's" body. There is much body switching and gender bending; two attempted castrations (by Myron, one on himself); Myron gets silicon implants; a transexual cowboy is elected governor of Arizona; and so on. Since Vidal was entirely comfortable with his show more sexuality, one assumes there's a sociopolitical agenda -- or maybe just a misguided attempt at satirical humor.

Read the Wikipedia summary here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myron_(novel) and if this is your cup of tea, have fun. By my lights, Vidal's Lincoln deserves an "A" along with his political writings and literary criticism. Judged accordingly, this attempt deserves a "D-". show less

You thought MYRA BRECKINRIDGE was outrageous? You haven't met MyYRON.

Myron Breckinridge has returned to the straight world of mainstream America and all is well - until he falls asleep one night while a sword & sandal b-movie plays on the television. He wakes to find he has been sucked into not only the film but to within the making of the film!

This life-shattering experience is enough to awaken his Amazonian alter-ego Myra to attempt to change film history for ever!

Pure comedy gold - ingeniously plotted and hysterically funny!

Myra strikes again! One night Myron Breckinridge, Chinese food caterer, dog-lover and devoted husband, is quietly watching 'Siren of Babylon' on his TV. Suddenly he gets zapped through the screen and into the 1948 movie set. And there, the irrepressible personality of Myra begins her glorious re-entry into the world. Her plans are 'big': they include de-powelling most of the male sex to avert overpopulation and the restoration of the values of Louis B. Mayer and Andy Hardy. Impossible? 'Nothing' is impossible for the extraordinary talents of Myra Breckinridge!

Books Read in the Past:

Not as good as Myra Brekinridge by a long shot, but still somewhat amusing. Here, Myron wrestles for the body (and therefore for gender) with Myra, his alter ego. This is given a further odd twist as Myra flings him through the television and into the past, not unlike Harry Potter and Dumbledore's pensieve. Myra has a mission, one Myron is set against, and hilarity ensues as they duke it out internally.

A must if you liked Myra! (but not as good)

Summary: Written as a sequel to his 1968 bestseller Myra Breckinridge, the novel was published shortly after an anti-pornography ruling by the Supreme Court. Vdal responded by replacing the profanity in his novel with the names of the Justices involved. Myra Breckinridge, the transsexual who terrorized Hollywood has transformed back into her former self, the literally and figuratively castrated Myron. However, the resurgence of his Myra personality literally pushes him into "Sirens of Babylon," a 1948 film that Myra thinks is the key to stopping overpopulation and the Nixon presidency. While inside this film (that takes three weeks to finishing filming, after which time repeats for the large group of people who have made it their home), show more Myron and Myra fight for control show less

ההמשך הבלתי נמנע למירה ברקנרידג'. עוד פחות מוצלח