I just e-mailed my husband, whose e-mail name is “larkinwriter.” I type in “lark,” and his name automatically pops up. It struck me as I typed “l-a-r-k” that, when I married Alan W. Harris thirty-seven plus years ago, I had no clue what a “lark” our marriage would be. I certainly had no clue than that he would be a writer. In fact, after typing some of his college papers, I was pretty certain that “writer” would never be on his resume!
But I am so thankful that artistic side of his character has blossomed. We’ve homeschooled for the past twenty-three years, and we have done many things to instill in our children the values that we believe it is essential that they carry throughout this life in order to make it into the next one. We have taught our children in many locations and at all possible times of the day and with very many curriculum choices. We have spent endless hours reading aloud and playing games together. We have stretched our imaginations to the max to try to bond together six very divergent personalities that span twenty years. But the one thing that has done more to bind us together as a family in a shared experience, to bond over common events and trials, is my husband’s writing and reading of the Larkin stories. He reads each chapter to the family with all his entertaining and full-of-personality voice characterizations. In fact, when the first book was printed, although it was a great-looking book, I was a little sad. I knew that the people who opened those pages were going to hear voices in their heads that were not accurate depictions of the voices of the characters. Rush and Tobin and Hawthorn and Jay and everyone had a special voice, and one wouldn’t hear them by turning the pages of a book. That’s when I asked my husband to record the audio books. I said, “But, honey, they won’t know what they really sound like!”
If you’ve read the Larkin books, you know how much fun you’ve had. I challenge you to try the audio books for a whole new perspective on the characters and a whole new level of fun. We’re working hard to have them ready for audio download. Instead of that long, boring drive on your commute or to go to ball practices or lessons or to visit relatives, load up on a Larkin audio book and be amazed at how the hours fly by! We had one family with nine children who had twelve hours to travel say that they almost drove past their destination because they were in an exciting part of the book and didn’t want to stop! The next year, they went to great lengths to be sure they had an audio copy of the new book before they travelled. Enjoying the Larkin Tales together has become a part of their family vacations memories, which are topped off by quoting their favorite characters and most memorable lines back and forth to each other. That, my friends, means a good time is to be had by tuning in to Dr. Harris’ world of Larkin. It may be a small world, but it is great big fun!
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