A Character's Family Members

    Ah, family members; you've gotta love 'em. Every person from the favorite uncle to the distant cousin is so unique and awesome in their own way. It's really cool to see families in fiction, not just because of the awesome beauty of those kind of relationships, but because being part of a family ourselves, we can relate to their family matters.
    Parents seem to be the most prominent family figures in a person's life at any stage, including adult life. In Kathy Reichs' Bones novels, the protagonist has a mother she talks with, and who helps her on at least one occasion with her mad computer skills.  Then of course there are the parents with roles in YA fiction, usually giving guidance or insight to their kids. Very close uncles and aunts can also fill in these parental roles really well too, acting as role models (or just really, really fun figures!). These kind of mentor characters can have so much wisdom and just have an admirable role in a story.
    And then there are siblings. They make great minor characters; in Kiera Cass's Selection series, the protagonist's younger sister gives her encouragement that motivates her to stay in the competition. But even when siblings don't play a major role in the story as characters, having them around can set up for existing conditions--like if a character has a baby sister who takes all the attention of their parents, conveniently giving the protagonist lots of time to themselves and the other characters s/he's with in the story.
    Overall, just like in real life, family members also tend to shape aspects of a character's personality. Lots of fictional villains turned to the dark side partially because of a bad home situation, and many good guys draw inspiration from a noble relative. Some characters end up echoing their own parents or older siblings (which could be considered a flaw they eventually overcome), and some are determined to become the polar opposite of them. There are tons of ways that a character's family influences who they turn out to be, and those little details can add so much depth!
    Not to say that every single character should have a family member popping up in the story, but I think the relevant details of a character's relationship with their family is good for character development. Plus, in writing, it's always pretty good to have some nice backstory information in stock just in case it eventually becomes applicable in the story, right?
    What are your thoughts? Do you have any favorite fictional families?