The eighteenth-century commodifications of childhood and the sciences overlapped in the
production of science books for children. This article examines a children's book written by two
members of the Unitarian circle around Warrington Academy in the 1790s, and contrasts it with a
Church of England work. The analysis reveals the extent to which religious differences could affect
parental attitudes to the natural world, reason, the uses of the sciences, and the appropriate way to read
and discuss books. Although the sciences were admitted as suitable for children, the issues of the
subjects to be chosen, the purposes they were intended for, and the pedagogical methods by which they
were presented, were still contested. This article also goes beyond the usual studies of children's books
by focusing on non-fiction, and by emphasizing readers and use, rather than authors or publishers. Yet
producing a history of reading based entirely on actual readers will be exceedingly difficult, so this
article suggests an alternative, by combining accounts of actual readers' experiences with attitudes
towards practices like orality and discussion.
Anne Fine
