This list of books are ONLY the books that have been ranked on the lists that are aggregated on this site. This is not a comprehensive list of all books by this author.

1. 1. The Golden Ass

   Metamorphoses

   

   This classic novel follows the protagonist, a young man who is transformed into a donkey after meddling with magic he doesn't understand. His journey takes him through a series of adventures, where he encounters a variety of characters from different walks of life and gets into all sorts of trouble. Through his experiences, he gains a deeper understanding of the human condition and the world around him. The narrative also includes several mythological tales and allegories, including the famous story of Cupid and Psyche. Eventually, the protagonist regains his human form through divine intervention, having learned valuable lessons about life, love, and humanity.

   The 512th Greatest Book of All Time

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2. 2. Metamorphoses , Vol 2, Books 7 11

   

   The narrative follows the protagonist still trapped in the body of an ass as he endures a series of violent, comic, and revealing episodes with successive masters—from household abuses and narrowly escaped slaughter to capture by brigands and involvement in a dramatic public exposure of witchcraft—while overhearing or witnessing several embedded tales that expose human greed, lust, and cruelty. These trials culminate in his encounter with the powerful cult of an Egyptian goddess: after seeking refuge, undergoing purification and initiation rites, and offering fervent prayers, he is finally restored to human form; the experience leaves him transformed in faith and outlook and provides the novel’s moral and religious resolution.

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3. 3. Metamorphoses , Vol 1 Of 2

   

   A curious young traveler obsessed with magic recounts how a fateful experiment strips him of human form and leaves him trapped in the body of a donkey; unable to speak and subject to humiliations, sale, and cruel or comic treatment by a succession of masters, he witnesses human vice and kindness, hears a series of embedded tales (including the famous love-and-trial story of a mortal woman and a god), and through these adventures and stories the work explores themes of transformation, curiosity, and the thin line between human and animal existence while setting the stage for a promised restoration.

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