“There once lived a very rich king called Midas / who believed that nothing was more precious than gold.”

So begins this imaginative and breathtaking retelling of the myth of the man with the golden touch. When a mysterious stranger offers to reward Midas for a kindness, the king does not hesitate: He wishes that all he touches would turn to gold. To his delight, his wish is granted and he soon sets about transforming his ordinary palace into a place of golden beauty. But to his dismay, when he accidentally turns his beloved daughter into a golden statue, Midas learns that what at first seems a blessing can also become a curse.