Author's Foreword Italo Calvino It is now 1985, and only fifteen years remain between us and the next millennium.At the moment, I don't feel that the approach of the New Era is causing any particular mood swings.I don't want to discuss futurology here, but literature.The current round of peace and prosperity that is coming to an end has witnessed the birth and development of modern Western languages, and the development of literature has explored the possibilities of these languages ​​in terms of expression, cognition, and imagination.It was also the millennium of the book, in which it took on the form we are now familiar with.We often wonder what will happen to literature and books in the so-called post-industrial technology age—and such attention may be a sign that the current halcyon is coming to an end.I don't really like to indulge in this kind of speculation.I have faith in the future of literature because I know there are things that literature alone can offer us.Therefore, I hope to invest these speeches in some value, quality, or literary characteristic with which I wholeheartedly agree, and try to see it from the perspective of the next halcyon.