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We know parents shape their children’s reading – but so can aunts, uncles and grandparents, by sharing beloved books

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/emily-grace-baulch-1399683">Emily Grace Baulch</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-queensland-805">The University of Queensland</a></em></p> <p><a href="https://creative.gov.au/news/media-releases/revealing-reading-a-survey-of-australian-reading-habits/">Over 80%</a> of Australians with children encourage them to read. Children whose parents enjoy reading are <a href="https://www.booktrust.org.uk/news-and-features/news/news-2023/new-research-from-booktrust-reveals-the-impact-of-parental-reading-enjoyment-on-childrens-reading-habits/">20% more likely</a> to enjoy it too.</p> <p>My research has found parents aren’t the only family members who play an important role in developing a passion for reading – extended family, from grandparents to siblings, uncles and great-aunts, also influence readers’ connections to books.</p> <p>I surveyed 160 Australian readers about their home bookshelves and reading habits. More than 80% of them acknowledged the significant influence of family in what and how they read. Reading to children is often <a href="https://www.booktrust.org.uk/globalassets/resources/research/booktrust-family-survey-research-briefing-2-reading-influencers.pdf">the invisible workload of mothers</a>: 95% of mothers read to children, compared to 67% of fathers.</p> <p>Yet intriguingly, those I surveyed – whose ages ranged from their early 20s to their 70s – collectively talked about books being passed down across eight generations.</p> <p>Family members were associated with their most valued books – and their identities as readers.</p> <h2>Treasured possessions</h2> <p>Books passed down through generations often become treasured possessions, embodying a shared family history. One person discussed an old hardcover copy of <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780732284350/blinky-bill/">Blinky Bill</a> by Dorothy Wall. Originally given to her father and his siblings by their great-aunt in 1961, the book’s pages are now discoloured and falling out.</p> <p>“Although I always think of my mother as having been my reading role model,” she wrote, “actually my father had an equally big impact, just in another way.” Her father is a central organising figure on her home bookshelf: she has dedicated a whole shelf to the books he liked.</p> <p>The story she tells about his old copy of Blinky Bill, however, crosses generations. The book’s battered state is a testament to its longevity and well-loved status. Its inscription to her family members makes the copy unique and irreplaceable.</p> <p>Another person remembered a set of Dickens’ novels, complete with margin notes and century-old newspaper clippings, carefully stored with her most special books. These volumes, initially owned by her great-great-grandmother and later gifted by her great-aunt, represent a reading bond passed down through generations.</p> <p>Such books can never be replaced, no matter how many copies might be in circulation. These books are closely associated with memories and experiences – they are invaluable for who they represent.</p> <p>A third person has her father’s “old” Anne McCaffrey’s <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/40323-dragonriders-of-pern">Dragonriders of Pern</a> series: he read it to her as a teenager, then passed it down. The book “sparked” her interest in science-fiction, and she now intends to pass it on to her own teenager. Her book, too, is “battered”, with “chunks falling out when you read it”. The cover is falling off.</p> <p>The deteriorating state of a book is part of the book’s legacy. It shows how loved it has been. Reading passions can be deliberately cultivated through family, but their value is less connected to reading comprehension or literacy than a sense of connection through sharing.</p> <p>Inherited, much-loved books bind families together. They can anchor absent family members to the present. These books can come to symbolise love, connection and loss.</p> <p>The family members who’ve passed down their books might not be physically present in children’s lives – they may not be reading aloud to them at bedtime – but through their books, they can have a strong presence in their loved ones’ memories. That indelible trace can be sustained into adulthood.</p> <h2>Buying books for the next generation</h2> <p>Another way relatives contribute to a family reading legacy is by buying new copies of much-loved books for the next generation. Theresa Sheen, from The Quick Brown Fox, a specialist children’s bookstore in Brisbane, notes that customers often ask for copies of books they had when they were younger.</p> <p>They may have read them to their children and now want them for their grandchildren. For example, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/40767-the-baby-sitters-club">The Babysitters Club series</a> by Ann M. Martin was mentioned multiple times as a nostalgic favourite, now being sought after by grandparents.</p> <p>Readers’ habits of re-buying favourite books can affect the publishing industry. With older children’s classics still selling, publishers seek to update the text to reflect contemporary cultural mores. Enid Blyton is one author who endures through intergenerational love and nostalgia. However, her work is regularly <a href="https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/books-magazines/books/enid-blytons-famous-five-books-edited-to-remove-offensive-words/news-story/47a63bb79a5d870f19aed58b19469bb5">edited and bowdlerised</a> to update it.</p> <p>Books can be imbued with the voices and emotions of others. They are more than just physical objects – they are vessels of shared experiences that can be passed down, up and across generations. This enduring bond between family members does more than preserve individual stories. It actively shapes and sustains a vibrant reading culture.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/232372/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/emily-grace-baulch-1399683"><em>Emily Grace Baulch</em></a><em>, Producer at Ludo Studio &amp; Freelance Editor, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-queensland-805">The University of Queensland</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Shutterstock </em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-know-parents-shape-their-childrens-reading-but-so-can-aunts-uncles-and-grandparents-by-sharing-beloved-books-232372">original article</a>.</em></p> </div>

Family & Pets

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Woman allegedly murders great-aunt with spaghetti

<p>Italian police are investigating the bizarre alleged murder of Maria Basso, 80.</p> <p>Paola Pepe, her young great-niece, was arrested for the alleged murder after she was believed to have force-fed Basso with spaghetti, Italian newspaper <em>Corriere della Sera </em>reported. </p> <p>Basso was vulnerable to choking if she did not eat finely chopped or pureed food, despite this Pepe still took out her great-aunt for a meal in a Sicily restaurant in December 2022. </p> <p>She allegedly bought Basso spaghetti, and two days later her great-aunt was dead, after some of the pasta allegedly got lodged in her airways. </p> <p>Her death initially looked like an accident, until Italian police launched further investigations and found that Pepe had amended her great-aunt's will just two days before the meal.</p> <p>The<em> Corriere della Sera</em> reported Pepe had taken an unusual interest in her great-aunt's finances in the months leading up to her death after she had unexpectedly turned up during Basso's 80th birthday, and spent hours alone with her. </p> <p>Pepe eventually moved Basso to a care home 1300 kilometres away, without telling her close family members, and reportedly did not take any of Basso's medication or personal belongings to the new home. </p> <p>Police alleged that after isolating her great-aunt, she managed to convince Basso to change her will so that Pepe was named sole beneficiary of Basso's estate, which was worth $775,000. </p> <p>Basso initially intended to give her estate to a charity, as she had no children according to local media.</p> <p>Pepe has denied all accusations and was bailed, but is wearing a police ankle bracelet while waiting for her trial. </p> <p><em>Image: Strettoweb</em></p> <p> </p>

Legal

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Aunt "refuses" to take on kids when her terminally ill sister dies

<p>A woman has "refused" to take on her terminally ill sister's children when she passes away, despite her sister begging her to, and her decision has gone viral. </p> <p>In a lengthy post to Reddit, the woman revealed that her older sister, 31, has recently been diagnosed with a large brain tumour that will drastically shorten her life. </p> <p>The woman's sister has a six-year-old, a two-year-old and a newborn baby, who she claims she doesn't have anyone other than her sister to leave them to. </p> <p>Her sister asked her to be the sole carer of her children, despite her and her husband, both 25, deciding to remain child-free. </p> <p>"We don't have family, and her ex-husband wants nothing to do with the kids since she cheated on him for years with many men and they aren't his. She doesn't know who the dad is," the woman explains.</p> <p>The woman then goes on to list the many reasons why she told her sister "no".</p> <p>"1. Since we are both child-free it would be unfair to ask my husband to make this kind of sacrifice. We both agreed to no kids when we got married; to change something like that generally means a divorce."</p> <p>"2. I am an atheist. My sister wants me to raise them religiously and to 'know god' and take them to church. No."</p> <p>She goes on to say that she was never very close with her sister, due to their six-year age difference, and that the memories she has of their childhood aren't so sweet.</p> <p>"[From] the memories I do have, she was always awful to me, [and] cynical...After she moved out at 18 we haven't talked once, besides at my parents funeral. I don't even know her kids, let alone her," she writes.</p> <p>Unsurprisingly, her terminally ill sister did not take her refusal well. </p> <p>"She cried and called me 'awful' but it's my life, and ultimately I get to be selfish with it..."</p> <p>"A child isn't an 18-year commitment; it's lifelong, and one I have decided not to take."</p> <p>The woman explains that since she told her sister "no", she has been bombarded with vicious messages from her sister's friends. </p> <p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 16px 0px 20px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-family: 'Proxima Nova', system-ui, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Fira Sans', 'Droid Sans', 'Helvetica Neue'; font-size: 18px; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 28px; vertical-align: baseline; caret-color: #333333; color: #333333;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">"Friends of hers whom I've never met have been reaching out to me and calling me at all hours to leave nasty voice mails.</span></p> <p>"[They say] I need to step up as a sister, but I just feel like she's trying to use me as her ticket out to dying and not feeling guilty," she wrote.</p> <p>The post has since gone viral on the social media website, with most commenters siding with the woman. </p> <p>One person said, "I've worked with kids for the past 20+ years and I can tell you that one of the worst things for a kid is to be with a parent who can't/doesn't want to be a parent."</p> <p>Another commented, "If you don't know these children at all, I don't see why your sister would want you to be their guardian. How could they possibly be comfortable with you after the loss of their mother? These so-called friends of hers would be better suited if they have an established relationship with the children."</p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

Family & Pets

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"Hurtful": Bride shares aunts furious wedding RSVP

<p>A bride has revealed the furious RSVP she received from her aunt after not inviting her partner of two years to the wedding.</p> <p>Taking to Reddit, the woman shared the "rude" response, explaining she had to cut down on her guest list due to the pandemic, but her aunt didn't take it well.</p> <p>"Most rude and hurtful," Aunt Edith scrawled across the invitation sent back in the mail.</p> <p>She added her partner's name 'Uncle Danny' and wrote a cross alongside 'Declines with regret'.</p> <p>Before adding: "Family shouldn't separate family. You shouldn't have sent one at all.</p> <p>The bride continued to explain that Uncle Dany wasn't very well-liked among the rest of the family and she had only met him a handful of times.</p> <p>Many agreed with the bride's right to invite who she wanted to, with one person telling the aunt to "harden up".</p> <p>"That‘s a quick way to quit being invited to family gatherings ever again," one person wrote.</p> <p>There were a few who thought the couple was actually rude for not inviting the partner, given they had been a couple for two years.</p> <p>"It's possible to think the couple was rude for not inviting a guest's long-term partner while also thinking the aunt's reaction was over the top," was one response.</p> <p>While others agree with that point, though stressed Covid changed the situation.</p> <p>"I think Covid makes a very big difference though. Without Covid, you should invite partners. With Covid, guests lists are very restricted," one person wrote.</p>

Relationships

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4 times Lady Kitty Spencer dressed just like her aunt Princess Diana

<p>Princess Diana has clearly been an influence on her niece and fashion model, 28-year-old Lady Kitty Spencer, which can be seen in the following gallery.</p> <p><strong>1. A vision in white</strong></p> <p>Lady Kitty Spencer attended the annual Serpentine Summery Party at Kensington Gardens in London.</p> <p>The event brings together a majority of people from the art, music, design, film and fashion industries.</p> <p>Lady Kitty Spencer wore a white Grecian gown with a sheet cape and embellished belt.</p> <p>Her look reminded royal fans of an outfit worn by Princess Diana at the 1991 premiere of<span> </span><em>Where Angels Fear to Tread</em>.</p> <p><strong>2. Jaw-dropping in black</strong></p> <p>Lady Kitty Spencer turned heads with this off-the-shoulder dress, pairing it with an interesting snake choker.</p> <p>It’s reminiscent of an outfit that Princess Diana wore at the Serpentine Gallery on June 1994.</p> <p><strong>3. Reminiscent of a rainforest</strong></p> <p>Turns out the aunt and niece pair are a fan of green as well.</p> <p>Lady Kitty Spencer attended an event at Chiswick House and Gardens on November 9, 2017 and turned heads in this stunning collared dress.</p> <p>The late Princess of Wales wore this green coat dress by Catherine Walker while visiting a Badshahi Mosque in Lahore back in September 1991.</p> <p><strong>4. Dazzling in sequins</strong></p> <p>As Lady Kitty Spencer attended the Walpole British Luxury awards in November, her blue sequinned look reminded some of another royal who had a penchant for sequins…</p> <p>As Princess Diana attended a gala at the Vienna Burgh Theatre during a visit to Autria in 1986, she chose a lovely blue sequinned outfit that turned heads.</p>

News

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The personality trait Lady Kitty shares with her aunt Princess Diana

<div> <div class="replay"> <div class="reply_body body linkify"> <div class="reply_body"> <div class="body_text "> <p>A lot of comparisons have been made between Lady Kitty Spencer and her late aunt, Princess Diana, given their similar looks.</p> <p>The two women indeed share some features such as blonde hair, wide blue eyes and an impeccable fashion sense. </p> <p><span>However, the resemblance between the late princess and her niece goes beyond appearance, a makeup artist who has worked with both women has revealed.</span></p> <p>Mary Greenwell, who did Spencer’s make-up for a recent photoshoot with <a href="https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/features/a26786746/lady-kitty-spencer-model-princess-diana-niece-interview-2019/"><em>Harper’s Bazaar</em></a>, said the experience reminded her of the times when she worked with Princess Diana in the 1980s and '90s.</p> <p>“To have Kitty with me in the makeup chair ... it just took me back in time,” Greenwell said.</p> <p>The makeup artist said Spencer – the daughter of Diana’s younger brother Charles Spencer and model Victoria Aitken – has a laissez faire attitude to life, just like her aunt Princess Diana and mother Victoria.</p> <p>“Diana was so willing and open – as is Victoria, and as is Kitty,” said Greenwell. “Just sort of free – there’s a sense of freedom with all of them. I think the sense of freedom is actually very important, that then they didn’t feel stifled by their upbringing and their circumstances.”</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/BvjVUkuB-tF/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_medium=loading" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BvjVUkuB-tF/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_medium=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Kitty Spencer (@kitty.spencer)</a> on Mar 28, 2019 at 5:31am PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p><em>Harper’s Bazaa</em>r also highlighted Spencer’s commitment to philanthropy work as another quality she shares with Diana. The 28-year-old is currently acting as a patron for military-family charity Give Us Time and an ambassador for youth homelessness charity Centrepoint, for which Diana was <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/entertainment/art/kensington-palace-shares-rare-photos-of-princess-diana/" target="_blank">a patron</a>.</p> <p>“You’ve got to really choose carefully and put your weight behind a few things that really matter to you, rather than spread yourself so thinly, because it’s easy to do that,” said Spencer.</p> <p>While the model and aristocrat has always been in the public’s eye, her popularity surged after she attended the wedding of her cousin Prince Harry in 2018. </p> <p>“[My Instagram followers] went from 17,000 to half a million in one night,” she said. “I thought I had someone else’s phone when I woke up the next morning.”</p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div>

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