Hillary Carlip runs the very funny Fresh Yarn. (I was a contributor here.) She also has a new book.

Queen of the Oddballs: And Other True Stories from a Life Unaccording to Plan

A hilariously offbeat memoir about an adventurous young woman’s escapades as she defies conventions and transforms an ordinary Los Angeles life into a star-studded, extraordinary miracle of self-discovery.

Queen of the Oddballs forms a chronology of Hillary Carlip’s habitual straying from roads more traveled – from a wisecracking third-grader suspended from school for smoking (while imitating Holly Golightly), to a headline-making teen activist, juggler and fire eater, friend (NOT “fan”) of Carly Simon and Carole King, grand prize-winning Gong Show contestant, cult rock star, and seeker of spiritual and romantic truths that definitely defy expectations.

Illustrated with ephemera – from diary entries and photographs to a handwritten letter from Carly Simon – Queen of the Oddballs presents a virtual time capsule of pop culture’s last four decades and celebrates a creative life lived to the hilt.