The Golden Ass

Apuleius's comic masterpiece, originally composed in the second century A.D., traces the hilarious misadventures of a young man a tad too curious about magic for his own good. Hoping to change himself into an owl, he turns himself into a donkey instead, and in this guise is sold, stolen, or otherwise shunted from one master to the next. Along the way, he sees the underbelly of the sprawling Roman Empire, with its saints and villains, its venal merchants and greedy priests, until he's transformed back to human form via divine intervention. M. D. Usher's creative adaptation brings the tale alive "for young readers of all ages." Classical scholars will admire its faithfulness and its clever innovations, while new readers-young and old-will enjoy its freshness and accessibility. Motley's lively, thoroughly contemporary drawings capture the boisterous, see-sawing plot.