Book excerpt: "What do you want for your children?" Faced with that question, Virginia Owens searches deeply for an honest answer. Faith, she decides, is what she wants to pass on. But how do we transmit our faith to the next generation in a world that has lost its regard for the family? Owens shows in vivid detail how we can live in all the ups and downs of family life and still impart our faith as a true fulfillment, not merely as a cultural appendage. In a beautiful, sensitive, and heartwarming manner, Virginia Stem Owens evokes many memories as she recalls the joys and sorrows of her own large and sometimes difficult and eccentric Texas clan, as well as the experiences of others, from Russian novelists to Texas bank robbers. A Feast of Families is a rich and rewarding repast.