Mike Cox I remember when I first discovered the magic. It was in the first grade. One day things just clicked. All the spelling tests, the English lessons, and the unrelenting demands of my teacher paid off. I could open a book and understand what was written on the page.

It was easily my greatest discovery; the thing most responsible for my being as I am today. I didn’t need anyone to tell me what to believe or explain things to me. I could find out for myself. I no longer had to rely on others to provide excitement, heroes, or validation. I could pick the ones I wanted and imagine them any way I wished.

Because of books, I could choose to never again be bored, uninformed, or stupid. The written word gives all of us the stories of our ancestors and the ideas and lessons of those who shape the future. All we have to do is open the cover and read.

The SC Book Festival starts February 18 with a fundraiser at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center. The festival itself, which features over 60 writers and two days of delight for us booklovers, will have scheduled events all day Saturday and Sunday. All this takes place at the state fairgrounds.

Reading has become old fashioned in the recent past. Video games, instant gratification mindsets, and a lack of quality stories has relegated authors and their books to the back seat of the bus. No one cool talks about reading anymore, but those who still find excitement between pages do so with a religious fervor. I'm a longtime practitioner.

Mythology and American history became important to me because I can read. I know Holden Caulfield, Alexander the Great, and Nathan Bedford Forrest because I read about them. James Lee Burke, John McDonald, and Ernest Hemingway have shared more leisure time with me than any of my golfing buddies.

Most of us take reading for granted. The gift we receive in kindergarten eludes a few, and it is hard to acheive with any kind of grace as an adult. Those who think reading isn’t important should be an adult literacy volunteer for a few months.

When a grown man can’t read and wants someone to teach him, he is showing tremendous courage. People like that understand how important it is to know what the letters mean and how embarrassing it is to reach adulthood without this ability.

Reading is a simple skill, and vastly underrated. Picking up a book instead of clicking on the TV is a choice, a habit waiting to be developed.

The SC Book Festival will be filled with books and people who love the written word.