More than 50 years after they topped the charts, Richard Carpenter is telling the story about the California soft pop duo his way for the first time in ”Carpenters:  The Musical Legacy.”

”Many times, right from the time that Karen and I first hit with ‘Close to You,’ there was so many beyond nasty, vicious things written about us,” said the 75-year-old Carpenter, recalling how music critics ridiculed their ballads.

The book is based on interviews he gave along with photos, posters, programs, reviews and their work schedules.

”It covers really from our childhood all the way through our years together, Karen and I, making music, and the legacy.  It concentrates more on the music that we made than the personal.”

The duo’s career tragically ended in 1983 when Karen died of heart failure attributed to complications from anorexia nervosa.

She was 32.

The book is being released November 16.

It’ll be followed up in January with a new album, ”Richard Carpenter’s Piano Songbook,” in which he plays classical arrangements of some of their hits.