Book excerpt: In the best of times and in darker days, the strong family unit is one of the most valuable building blocks of our societies. The Cornish family, in its individuality, in its far-flung breadth and with its sense of worldwide community, is a vigorous example of this truth. In this magnificent book, Dr Bernard Deacon explores who we are, our forefathers and our descendants, where we come from and where we are headed and how these major themes are expressed in the meaning of our names.