7 Words Billy Joel Said to Christie Brinkley About Her Memoir

Uptown Girl, Christie Brinkley's unflinching new memoir, dropped on Tuesday, and the former supermodel admits that writing about ex Billy Joel was the most difficult part of penning it, as she delved into his drinking and suspected affairs, among other topics. "The hardest thing to include was criticism of Billy, because I do care about my friendship with him," she tells Today. But "I did have to go there, because that was the reality." Ultimately, the 71-year-old simply wants to share her story: "I hope it'll be a nice diversion in a world that can use a good book every now and then, take you away on a little adventure." More notable quotes from Brinkley, via Today, Fox News, People, Page Six, and InStyle:

• On tumultuous early childhood: Brinkley notes she was relieved when her biological father gave up his parental rights and she was adopted by stepdad Don Brinkley: "I started to wonder what life would be like with Don as our dad. I suddenly felt a huge sense of relief, realizing that I would never be whipped, spanked, rubbed raw with towels, or made to gag on soap again."
• On meeting Joel: "I knew I wanted to keep him as a friend. We hit it off immediately. I mean, immediately."
• On their marriage: "I never wanted to end things with Billy. ... But his drinking was bigger than the both of us—booze was the other woman, and it was beginning to seem that, he preferred to be with 'her' rather than with me. ... To this day, Billy continues to deny ever having had affairs, and I've always believed him."

• Her description of Joel: "He's a very loyal guy. He's loyal to his friends, he's generous. He just had a lot of stresses on him at the point when we were together and it just kind of came crashing down on us."
• What he had to say about her memoir: "Just say what you need to say," he told her when she was writing it.
• 'Most tortured relationship I've ever had': That's how Brinkley describes fourth husband Peter Cook, whom she found out was having an affair with a teen in 2006.
• 'Not a revenge novel': Brinkley insists that, even though her book also details her other three failed marriages to Cook, Jean-Francois Allaux, and Richard Taubman, "this is not a revenge novel. It's filled with joy and when there are bad moments, it's sort of how to keep going and not let them pull you down."
• On future romance: "If there's a romantic love that comes along ... it would be wonderful. But I also feel very content and happy with the life that I have right now, and I consider my life to be very full of love."

(More Christie Brinkley stories.)