ST. PAUL — Maybe it's that he's hit retirement age, but Garrison Keillor wasn't afraid to admit that his latest novel was easy to write.

"For me, that was manageable," Keillor said of "Pontoon," his 248-page return to Lake Wobegon. "I'm telling my publisher I want to write a series of short novels. Now that I'm suddenly a senior citizen, I don't want to spend years reading a book."

The novel will be published today, the same week that Keillor begins a new season of his long-running Minnesota Public Radio show, "A Prairie Home Companion."

The new book is his fifth set in the fictional town of Lake Wobegon.

COSBY'S BRINGING 'LITTLE BILL' BACK

LOS ANGELES — Bill Cosby is getting behind efforts to improve education.

Cosby announced last week that his animated series, "Little Bill," which is aimed at getting preschoolers interested in learning, is returning to television today on cable's Noggin network. It previously was part of the Nickelodeon cable network's "Nick Jr." programming bloc for preschoolers.

In an era where No Child Left Behind dominates education, the comedian complained recently, "The high school dropout rate in some cities is as high as 55 to 75 percent. While the behinds are moving forward, some of the minds are left behind."

The series is based on Cosby's "Little Bill" book series, which teaches the importance of friendship and family relationships and attempts to show children creative ways to solve their problems.

HIP-HOP ARTISTS RAP ON FINANCES

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Those new Nikes are fresh, but will they rock your retirement like a money market account?

Rap artists and fans debated the finer points of money management this weekend at a seminar at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro. The event was sponsored by the Hip-Hop Action Network, led by music industry mogul Russell Simmons.

Simmons and performers such as Jim Jones and Lil' Mo talked about how to avoid debt and invest intelligently. They discussed credit ratings and the advisability of buying a home.

Simmons brought street cred to the subject: He sold his stake in Def Jam Records for a reported $100 million in 1999 and is now head of Rush Communications, an entertainment, fashion and marketing conglomerate.

Their overall advice: Work hard, don't abuse credit and balance the bling against your future needs.

'3:10 TO YUMA' IS JUST THE TICKET

LOS ANGELES — The critically acclaimed Western "3:10 to Yuma," starring Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, outgunned the fright fest "Halloween" to become the weekend's top box office draw.

The remake from Lionsgate took in $14.1 million from Friday through yesterday, according to studio estimates. While the film did not produce huge numbers, it performed well for a genre picture on a historically slow weekend.

The weekend's other high profile opener, "Shoot 'Em Up," starring Clive Owen took in only $5.5 million, but that was good enough to finish sixth.

The documentary about the Apollo space program, "In the Shadow of the Moon," did well in limited release. The movie, from ThinkFilm, took in $41,200 in four theaters.