Twice-Told Tales is the first of Hawthorne's marvelous short story collections and was praised upon first publication as a work of genius. Edgar Allan Poe described the short stories as 'remarkable' and Hawthorne's style as 'singularly effective - wild, plaintive, thoughtful, and in full accordance with his themes.'

This short story collection was first published in two volumes; the first being released in the spring of 1837 and the second in 1842. The stories had all been previously published in magazines and annuals, hence the name ‘twice-told tales’. Hawthorne had been encouraged to collect these previously anonymous stories by his friend Horatio Bridge, who offered $250 to cover the risk of the publication. Many had been published in The Token, edited by Samuel Griswold Goodrich. When the works became popular, Bridge revealed Hawthorne as the author in a review he published in the Boston Post.