Crossword Genius

Books young 50's trendy carries or carried (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

toted

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'carried' is the definition.
(toting is a kind of carrying)

'books young 50's trendy carries' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'books' could be 'ot' (Old Testament) and 'ot' is present in the answer.
The remaining letters 'ted' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

'or' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for toted that I've seen before include "Carried - conveyed" , "Carried (a gun?)" , "Bore" , "Carried (something heavy)" , "Lugged" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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