By Ryan M. Monk

October 16, 2006 | HYRUM -- A Dumpster full of Bookmobile books was found across the street from Ridley's Food and Drug recently.

"My little brother was going to the Dumpster to throw out some things when he found them," said Hyrum resident Michelle Mortensen.

The Dumpster was so filled with books that when people got in to sort through them they couldn't help but stand on them. Stories ranging from children's books to Henry Kissinger's Diplomacy could be found. Some were stamped "Carbon County Bookmobile" on the inside cover.

They were probably dumped because they were no longer circulating, said Marsha Herron, Cache County library director. One of the books had not been checked out in 13 years.

The collection management policy of the state Bookmobile program says a book may be discarded for any of six reasons: if it is obsolete or outdated; worn beyond use; damaged; no longer circulating; one of many copies of a formerly popular title; or if newer editions are available.

"We try not to throw them away," said Herron. "We usually try to sell them to the public or a library or even donate them to Deseret Industries. We stamp ours 'discarded' when we discard our books."

There was no discarded stamp on the books from the Dumpster.

Linda Turner of the Carbon County Bookmobile could not be reached for comment.

Many boxes of books were taken from the Dumpster. One Dumpster diver, Hyrum resident Rose Rockwell, rescued many children's books to send to a grade school teacher in Brooklyn who is trying to start a class library.

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