Title page of 1556 edition published by Joannes Gryphius (decorative border added subsequently). Hayden White Rare Book Collection, University of California, Santa Cruz Original title Metamorphoseon libri First published in Language Genre(s),,,, (see ) The Metamorphoses (: Metamorphōseōn librī: 'Books of Transformations') is a by the poet, considered his. Comprising fifteen books and over 250, the poem chronicles the history of the world from its to the deification of within a loose mythico-historical framework. Although meeting the criteria for an, the poem defies simple genre classification by its use of varying themes and tones. Himalaya Vintage Rapidshare Premium. Ovid took inspiration from the genre of metamorphosis poetry, and some of the Metamorphoses derives from earlier treatment of the same myths; however, he diverged significantly from all of his models. One of the most influential works in, the Metamorphoses has inspired such authors as,,, and.