For each family in LitSite's Family Gatherings, reading and writing have been a fundamental part of its cherished time together. Gathered here are stories by parents talking about their own love of reading and writing and how they have passed this love on to their children. There are also stories, poems and illustrations by children marking their growth into literacy. We invite you to send your stories, too.

 Nora's Story
For Nora Story Clark and her parents, Bob and Andrea, storytelling became a way to cope with Nora's battle with cancer, which they discovered when Nora was only 2 years old. Bob worked on his short story, "Hospital Game" based on his experience raising a daughter too young to understand the heartbreak of her illness, while Nora drew pictures and wrote stories about the important people, pets and objects in her life -- including her scars. Reading and writing has been a central part of the family's life. 

Reading, Writing and Family Life
"Reading, writing and family life are all woven together in our book-cluttered home," says writer Andromeda Romano-Lax. "We read more because we read together, and we are brought together, in part, because we all love reading." In their essays Andromeda and her husband Brian give a glimpse into their book-cluttered home, from the way books both soothe and stimulate their five-year-old son Aryeh, to the intimacy they experienced reading aloud to each other as newlyweds, to the way Aryeh has helped his mother rediscover the magic of words. And Aryeh shares some of his favorite poems.

Music in the Family
Music is an integral part of life -- and a way to tell stories -- for Jim Kerr and Denise Martin and their daughter, Amanda. When the family performs together at venues like the Saturday Market and CIRI’s annual Potlatch, they are engaging in a discussion -- a musical discussion.

Willy and Joseph
Willy Templeton is a single dad whose son, Joseph, 15, has Down Syndrome. Joseph is healthy and strong but doesn't talk. Even so, communication between father and son is rarely a problem.

Home-Grown Writing Culture
Kathleen McCoy, Peter Porco and Maeve McCoy are another family in which literacy is highly valued. Kathleen is the Pulitzer prize-winning features editor of the Anchorage Daily News. Peter is a reporter for the Anchorage Daily News and president of the Alaska Poetry League. Maeve McCoy lives in a blue nest surrounded by books. She has a favorite old blue upholstered rocker in the living room, with a giant bookshelf next to it.

Reading With Sadie
Peter Oswald and Lisa Stratford are the proud parents of Sadie, an energetic toddler. Here Peter, Lisa and Sadie talk about the discoveries Sadie makes because of the many books in her life.

Stories Keep Connections Strong
Reading is a part of everyday life for Chuck and Joyce Barnett, and their daughter, Katelyn. Rosalee Larson, Joyce’s mother, is writing her memoirs for her children and grandchildren. Joyce’s brother, Curt Larson, who lives in Seattle, bridges the distance by writing stories and plays for Katelyn.

Not Allowed to Read?
The Van Dommelen children, who are home schooled Waldorf style, read so much that their father, Dorn, has to say, “Stop reading, you’re reading too much, go outside and play! You’re not allowed to read anymore!”

Busy With Books
Robin Moore began buying books for her daughter, Heidi, before she was born and began reading to her when she was about three months old. Robin and her husband, Terry, have watched Heidi develop listening and reading skills and begin to share their love of books.

Ten Books a Day
"I want my kids to be smart," says Patty Ryall. Patty spent her childhood in and out of foster homes, and missed out on the kind of education she knows her own kids will need to be successful. So, when her son began having problems at school, Patty took action. She began taking her kids to the library, spending hours every day reading to them, turning them all into voracious readers. She has seen it turn her son around and bring her whole family closer.

Mom G and Mary
"My mom told me to write letters to those I knew as if I was sitting with them and talking to them," says the woman everyone calls only Mom. "So it is that I find it easy to write short stories and have published my first book at age 80." As a tribute to her mother's wisdom and humor, Mary Halprin collected Mom's stories together into Memories by Mom: Tales of an Alaskan Homestead. Then Mary began to find she had stories to tell, too.

Between Two Cultures
Suzanne Sharp tells her daughers, Janelle and Rachel, that if they want to learn about her Inupiaq culture (who she is and who they are as well), they can read, talk to people, and even take classes. It takes a lot of work to resist assimilation, Suzanne explains, especially when living in Anchorage.

Reading Adventures
Heather, Mike, Max (6), and Reiker (3) Durtschi live in Girdwood, Alaska, where they spend as much time engaged in the outdoors as possible. Heather is a teacher for the Anchorage School District, Mike a commercial fisherman. Here Heather discusses the integral role that reading plays in her family's life.

The Reunion
Julianna Kien tells about her return to New Mexico to visit with her 82-year-old mother, Ida. During the visit she arranged a reunion with Ethel, one of her mother's old friends in Shiprock, that was as emotional for her as for her mother.