«The Tale of Lost Time» was written by Yevgeny Lvovich Schwartz for the puppet theater just before the war in 1940. By that time, realizing his dream, he was already an established writer and playwright who had found his own voice and theme. Even as a child, Yevgeny shyly whispered to his mother, when she asked him what he wanted to be, «a novelist». He began to create his own stories early on, and they always had a happy ending. From a young age, Yevgeny had a passion for literature and theater. While studying at the law faculty of Moscow University, he spent almost all the money his parents sent on theater tickets. It’s no surprise that Schwartz soon joined the ranks of failed lawyers, among whom were Charles Perrault, the Brothers Grimm, and Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann. Instead, a remarkable storyteller was born - Yevgeny Schwartz. In 1921, he arrived in Petrograd with a touring group from the Rostov «Theater Workshop» and quickly earned a reputation as a dazzling improvisational storyteller. Shortly thereafter, he began working in the children’s department of Gosizdat under the guidance of Samuil Marshak. Schwartz started writing stories for the children's magazines «Chizh» and «Yezh». During this time, his first fairy tales appeared; all of them are included in this unique collection. They are not just for children. Nikolai Pavlovich Akimov once said of Schwartz that «...a wizard was found after all, who, while retaining power over children, managed to conquer adults as well».
Schwartz's fairy tales in this book are illustrated by the drawings of Viktor Alexandrovich Chizhikov. To millions of Russians, he is known as the author of the charming smiling Bear, which became a symbol of the XXII Summer Olympic Games. In Viktor Alexandrovich's drawings, not only bears, dogs, cats, hares, and mice smile, but even frogs and crocodiles. It is immediately evident that these images were created by a talented and cheerful person. Chizhikov seriously considered the profession of illustrator after meeting the Kukryniksy group. They liked his school drawings and advised Viktor not to give up drawing. As a result, Chizhikov enrolled in the art department of the Moscow Polygraphic Institute and began collaborating with the magazines «Krokodil», «Vesyolye Kartinki», and «MurZilka» while still a student. His drawings regularly appeared in the pages of «Pioner», «Young Naturalist», and «Around the World». Chizhikov illustrated over two hundred books, including works by Andersen, Chukovsky, Mikhalkov, Milne, Zakhoder, Marshak, and Uspensky. In 1981, he became an honored artist of the RSFSR, and in 2016, a people's artist of the Russian Federation.
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