“Transformation” in The Keepsake for MDCCCXXXI

From 1823 onward, Mary Shelley published five additional novels, some biographies, several articles and reviews, a travel book, and more than 20 short stories, most of which first appeared in The Keepsake. A literary annual, The Keepsake was bound in luxurious crimson silk and intended as a Christmas or New Year’s gift for women. Its editorial process began with the production of its high-quality steel engravings; contributors were asked to write stories based on the pictures. Mary Shelley may well have found the moon-gazing “Juliet” to be less than inspiring. Though she appears as the love interest, Juliet is hardly the focus of “Transformation,” which tells the story of the dashing but profligate Guido, who trades bodies with a demonic dwarf in exchange for riches.