'The Carrie Diaries' released Tuesday

NEW YORK, April 27 (UPI) -- "The Carrie Diaries," Candace Bushnell's young-adult prequel to "Sex and the City," was released Tuesday in the United States, HarperCollins Publishers said.

The book marks Bushnell's teen novel debut and "visits iconic character Carrie Bradshaw during her high school years, giving an inside look at Carrie's friendships, romances and what led her to Manhattan," the publisher said in a news release.

Bushnell is to embark on a tour to support "The Carrie Diaries," starting Tuesday in New York and continuing on to Miami; Atlanta; Nashville; Kansas City, Mo.; Chicago; Dallas; Houston; Los Angeles; and San Francisco.

Bushnell is the author "Sex and the City," "Lipstick Jungle," "Once Fifth Avenue," "4 Blondes" and "Trading Up." "Sex and the City" was the basis for the hit HBO show and film of the same name. A big-screen sequel is set for release this spring.