Cobwebs to Catch Flies

It was an innovative book in several respects as it focused on the child reader’s own experience and interests, including toys, pets, games, visits to the fair etc., and was one of the first books to differentiate between reading age groups; each volume became progressively more difficult as the child progressed.

The early editions were printed in large types containing charming woodcut illustrations, and each volume had an engraved frontispiece seeking to represent the content of the stories.

Marshall assigned the copyright to Baldwin, Cradock, & Joy, who published new editions throughout the 1820s and 1830s, improving production standards and commissioning new versions of the illustrations.

The Dublin printer John Rice pirated the work in 1794, and in 1799 Marshall’s rival, Elizabeth Newbery, published an un-illustrated French language version.

Meanwhile, in the Britain, Darton and Co. published several editions between 1842 and 1858, and the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK) others between 1844 and 1860, which were adapted to include a religious message.