This early prose work by a North African writer, _The Golden Ass_, is a classic. The man is in the body of an ass. He experiences life as an ass would. He overheard conversations and witnesses deeds that a human stranger would not be allowed to witness. It's a brutal, funny, and memorable ride.

I would recommend this book, if you like bold, big adventures like Gulliver's Travels or Homer's Odyssey.

Schools at the advanced high school to college grade levels which still have curriculums of Latin studies will welcome this annotated edition of Apeleius' novel classic. Apuleius: Metamorphoses Book 1 can be used in combination with other readings and provides Latin text, notes and vocabulary perfect for undergraduates.

Apuleius' great work is not read enough. As the story of an libertine who is unfortunately changed into an ass unfolds, we see a satire unfold that provides both entertainment and a biting commentary of life in the ancient Greco-Roman world. The book shows you the great distance between us moderns and the ancients, but what is likely to surprise you the most is precisely the opposite: those ways in which we are so similar.

This book although close to two millenia old, could have been written today. Its just as relevant today as when it was written. The book is significant in that it does a good job in giving the reader an understanding of what the physical plane of existence is all about. The protagonist is transformed to an ass and through the eyes of the ass sees the world and experiences the world within those limitations. Thru cruelty, perversion, abuse and other misadventures, the formerly well placed narrarator experiences life in a very unique way. The tale then deals with his eventual retransformation to his normal human self and then there is an exposition of the ancient mystery rites. The treatment of the mysteries is broad stroke but interesting tidbits are revealed. I love Taylors works, and even given the dated writting style I much prefer this version. I savored reading this one!

I consider myself a connosieur of the classics, so when I heard of an ancient novel concerned with sex, illicit sex, and illicit donkey sex, I decided to take a closer look.

And I'm glad that I did. At the back end of the classical Western literary tradition of silliness, which includes such hallowed humorists as Chaucer, Bocaccio, Rabelais, Cervantes, and, in its divine form, Shakespeare, we find the one tale that may have excited them all--Lucius Apuleius's Golden Ass.

The Golden Ass is filled with adventure, suspense, humor, and nonsense. I had a grin on my face most of the way through, and I got the feeling that the author did too. Tip o' the hat to Robert Graves for delivering an authentic translation that brings us Apuleius in his bawdy best.

The only thing I found occasionally irritating was that, like Cervantes, Apuleius has a tendency to digress. Big time. He inserts the entire myth of Cupid and Psyche right into the middle of the narrative, for example. Does this add to the mythological message of the whole? Probably, but it subtracts from the fantastic flow of the story. My urgent plea to Apuleius, were he alive today, would be, "Stick to the ass!"

There are a number of reasons that traditionally bring people to this book: to study Classical Rome, classic literature, mythology, psychology... maybe you're curious about the intimate lives of donkeys. Whatever has brought you to this novel, now that you're going to read it, perhaps the best thing to do is to take the advice of the author himself, who says, "Read on and enjoy yourself!"

I thought only cats were supposed to have nine lives, but this donkey has at least that many. This book is great fun, I couldn't put it down for too long, and it is incredible that something written so long ago (18 centuries?) can be so accessible, captivating, and hilarious to a modern reader. The events in The Golden Ass resemble the ribald, bawdy exuberance of the Decameron, and no doubt Boccaccio was somewhat inspired by the writings of Apuleius. According to the introduction, the adjective "golden" in the title implies "the ass par excellence" or "the best of all stories about an ass." The story follows the misadventures of Lucius, an enterprising young man who gets far too close to the world of magic, is transformed into a donkey and is constantly thwarted in his attempt to procure the antidote to his assness. It's human mind trapped in donkey bawdy! Totally imaginative, classically written, hilarious fun. As a writer, Apuleius was MILLENNIUMS ahead of his time! (Note: my review is based on the Robert Graves translation, rather than the William Adlington).

I read The Golden Ass for a Classic art course I took while at university I loved it! It is fun, entertaining and comical- not your typical dry Roman read. It is a great story and a great look into history.I highly recommend this tale to anyone who not wants to laugh but is interested in an important text from antiquity.

This book helps us understand your inner-self. You learn a lot about how you really are and learn how to control new abilities. I would give this book to any women who wants to get in touch with a secret part of their mind. You also learn about history and this helps you to adapt what you've learned in your present life.

Taylor's translation of Apuleius' "On the God of Socrates" is a beautiful translation, but his prose is slightly dated. It seems most apt for an academic setting, and I recommend it to classicists or those with a knowledge of the classical world.

This book of allusion in the of Apuleius supplies intelligent discussion of some fruitful scenes and tries to sketch a framework of methodologies of approaching allusion, inlfuence and immitation in ancient literature. The second chapter on parody and the fourth chapter on the narrator as a liar, allusions to Sinon, are the two I found most coherently informing. The primary strength of this book is the application of the author's close reading and well of intelligence. Finkelpearl illuminates specific points of departure (primarily Vergil and Ovid) for Apuleius' own fabulous transformations. Another strength, surely a sign of wisdom on the part of the author, also makes for an absence of note in my reading. I am speaking of a lack of consistent theoretical approach to allusion. It is perhaps the case that each author uses other texts differently, sui generis in every case. However, the collection of methods and approaches to allusion, intertextuality, imitatio, influence seems to be without a guiding principal, aside from situational efficacy. In this case, Finkelpearl by carrying a very large toolbox, on the whole, seems to approach each textual situation with the appropriate tool.