When possessing too many books could be dangerous for your mind, and the pocket, too

The Standard columnist, and author, Dr Peter Kimani.

"Why do you have so many books?" the opening question was delivered with surprising aggression. In my regular posture, I'd have asked if bearing many books is a crime, but since I had travelled Business-which doesn't happen often-I maintained that dignified air that comes with such privilege.

"Why shouldn't I have many books?" I said calmly to the attendant who greeted me at the Arrivals lounge at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, last week. It had rained earlier, so puddles of water that the CNN journalist Larry Madowo had popularised on social media.