For the first time, "Tales of an Old Talker" were published at the end of the 19th century by order of the Russian publisher, Swiss-born Alfred Fedorovich Devrien. He began his career as a manager in one of the bookstores in St. Petersburg, but soon opened his own publishing company. She mainly published books and magazines on agriculture and zoology, but Devrien was attracted by other literature, in particular, fairy tales.