Peter Singer has breathed new life into Apuleius’s The Golden Ass—a hilarious, bawdy tale and one of the earliest novels.

Apuleius’s The Golden Ass, one of a handful of surviving ancient novels, has remained relatively unknown—until now. Renowned philosopher and animal rights activist Peter Singer remedies this neglect with a new edited version of the rollicking story of the travails, erotic adventures and ultimate enlightenment of a cocky young man who is transformed into a donkey.

Singer has teamed with Apuleius scholar and translator Ellen Finkelpearl and prize-winning artists Anna and Varvara Kendel to present Apuleius’s novel as not only an engaging and entertaining story but as a remarkable example of ancient empathy for animals and deep understanding of their suffering.