Don Shelby may be retired from television, but not from communication. He has a new book out, published by Bascom Hill of Minneapolis. "The Season Never Ends: Wins, Losses, and the Wisdom of the Court" is a series of recollections about life lessons learned from pivotal basketball games. The foreword is by Tubby Smith.

The book is a blend of fact and fiction, Shelby says. "This is hard to put a label on," he wrote in an e-mail. "Creative nonfiction cannot fit this because I've altered names and places and dates. They are not fiction, because they are based on true events. It is a collection of stories and reminiscences from a lifetime in basketball."

Initially, the book will be available only at Dunn Bros. coffee shops, where Shelby will do a series of events. (He'll be at the Hopkins Dunn Bros. at 1 p.m. Saturday, and at the Apple Valley Dunn Bros. at 1 p.m. next Sunday. A full schedule of events is at www.coffeeandbooks.com.) After August, the book will be available more widely.

Also ...

Loretta Ellsworth's newest YA novel, "Unforgettable," will be out in September from Walker. It's set on Minnesota's Iron Range and tells the story of a boy who never forgets anything -- every event of every day of his life. Ellsworth is the author of three other novels for young adults. She'll launch her new book Oct. 14 at Red Balloon in St. Paul, and will do readings Oct. 15 at Barnes & Noble Galleria and Oct. 20 at the library in Lakeville.

Fran Lebowitz will be in Minneapolis in October as part of the Hennepin Theatre Trust's "Living Legends" series. Lebowitz is both a TV star and a best-selling writer, author of "Metropolitan Life" and "Social Studies." She's been called the modern-day heir to Dorothy Parker, and that sounds about right -- funny, a little bitter, with biting social commentary. Tickets are $32.50-$42.50 and are on sale at www.hennepintheatretrust.org or at 1-800-982-2787. She'll be at the Pantages Theatre at 8 p.m. Oct. 14.

• Oh, dear. A serial killer is gruesomely murdering teens in a small Minnesota town. Thank goodness for Nube Lawson, a retired FBI agent who just retired to that same small town. He's the protagonist of "The Fed Man," by James A. Mohs of Melrose, Minn., which will be published in October by Emerald Book Co.

David LaRochelle's charming picture book, "1+1=5," was a finalist for a Minnesota Book Award this year. Now he has a new book out, "The Haunted Hamburger and Other Ghostly Stories," illustrated by Paul Meisel and published by Dutton. It's a collection of very scary stories -- told by ghosts, and about people.