Isaac Asimov, Jean Marie Cote (Illustrator)
Futuredays: A Nineteenth-Century Vision of the Year 2000.
Henry Holt and Company, 1986. First printing of first US edition. A Lucy-Caroll Book/An Owl Book. 0805001204 96 pages.
Softcover volume, measuring approximately 8.25" x 9.25", is in fine condition, with solid binding, clean and bright pages.
"In 1899, Jean Marc Côté, a French commercial artist, was commissioned to produce illustrations for a series of cigarette cards to coincide with celebrations being held throughout France to mark the turn of the century. But, before the cards could be distributed, the company that commissioned them went out of business, leaving behind just one set of complete cards. Fifty of these cards, whimsically depicting life in the year 2000, are reproduced in full colour here, with lively commentary and analysis from the twentieth century's most esteemed futurist, Isaac Asimov.
In his fascinating discussion of futurism which serves as an introduction to this book, Isaac Asimov writes: "The desire to know our individual destinies has been linked, through the centuries, with our desire to foretell what will happen to humanity as a whole, to comprehend in all its complexity the grand sweep of history." In "Futuredays," the artist's imagination tackles the uncertainties of the future with delightful, amusing, and surprisingly accurate results."