MOSCOW, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- "Have you read Murzilka?"

    The answer is always in the affirmative, even if the question is thrown at Muskovites at random.

    And the answer is always accompanied by a hearty smile.

    Murzilka is the oldest and most popular illustrated magazine for children aged six to 12 and its publication has never halted, even in the midst of World War II.

    The magazine celebrated its 90th anniversary of publication in May this year.

    "My grandparents and parents read Murzilka when they were young," wrote an 8-year-old in her letter addressed to the magazine, "One day, I will ask my children and grandchildren to read Murzilka."

    First published in 1924, the main character of the magazine go this name of Murzilka from initiating story writer Anna Hvolson.

    In 1937, illustrator Aminadav Kanevsky gave Murzilka his golden and furry image, always wearing a red beret with a scarf and camera over his shoulder.

    Readers in the former Soviet Union and now Russia have been enjoying adventuring around with Murzilka ever since.

    The magazine is not just about Murzilka. It also presents readers with outstanding literature from time to time.

    Valentin Kataev, author of the novel "Long and Winding Road", published his maiden work in Murzilka when he was 27.

    More than 200 writers and painters are now contributing works to the magazine, according to Murzilka's chief editor, Tatiana Androsenko.

    It is Murzilka that started the creative careers of such writers as Samuil Marshak, Sergey Mikhalkov, Elena Blaginina, Boris Zahoder, Agniya Barto, Nikolay Nosov and Marina Uspensakya.

    Over the years, the magazine has evolved from fairy tales of Murzilka to encompass novels and poems on children and children-related columns, from which children and adults alike cannot only learn the Russian language but also ideas.

    The magazine has become an irreplaceable soul guide for generations of Russian children.

    Kolya Hovozhenin, a 5-year-old boy, asked in his letter dating back to 1928: "Murzilka, do you help your mom do housework?"

    "Murzilka, I live on high mountains," wrote Yusuf during World War II, "My dad is a sheep keeper and he is going to the front line to fight Fascists. I will feed the sheep and give them to the Red Army."

    That was the letter from a third grader from a Caucasus village in 1941.

    In his congratulatory message to Murzilka in 2009, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev wrote: "Your magazine has been fulfilling the duty to educate children. It devotes itself to cultivating children's goodness and helping them feel the joy of writing."

    Though the times have become more realistic now, children in Russia still believe in the existence of Murzilka.

    Tatiana said Russian kids would ask where he had gone if they were told Murzilka was not in when they called to look for him.

    Editors would sometimes answer the phone calls in an imaginative voice of Murzilka. And the young callers would hang up satisfied as soon as they heard their Murzilka, said the editor-in-chief.

    For many Russian families, reading Murzilka has become more than a pastime. It is part of their life and part of their culture.

    "Murzilka will celebrate its 600th anniversary of publication," the 8-year-old girl assured everyone in her letter to the magazine.