She remains one of Hollywood’s most symbolic icons. She has captured men’s hearts and women’s admiration everywhere. And she spent most of her childhood right here in La Jolla. Raquel Welch, 69, visited Warwick’s Books on May 10 to promote and sign copies of her new woman-to-woman manifesto, “Raquel: Beyond the Cleavage.” Before taking a seat at the signing table to talk and pose for photos with a crowd that Warwick’s staff estimated at 250, Welch briefly remarked that she was happy to be back in La Jolla, which she remembered as the site of many fond childhood memories. Accompanied by her sister, Gayle Tejada, who said she lives down the street from the bookstore, Welch also asserted that she was not a product of the film industry and stressed the importance of maintaining physical and emotional wellness through proper diet and yoga. In “Beyond the Cleavage,” Welch employs her autobiography and her personal philosophy to counsel women about love, sex, health, body image, career, family, forgiveness and aging. She divulges details about a temperamental father, her first love, marriage and divorce, her struggles as a single working mother in Hollywood, her battle to acquire challenging roles and respect as an actress, and her resolution to never lie about her age. Welch also reveals some of her beauty and health regimens, including her passion for fashion and yoga, which she says have helped her stay positive past age 50. Born Jo Raquel Tejada on Sept. 5, 1940 in Chicago as the first of three children to an American mother and a Bolivian father, the family relocated to La Jolla when Welch was two. With her sights set on theater and the performing arts from an early age, Welch grew up taking dance classes and later won a slew of teen beauty titles, including Miss San Diego and Miss La Jolla. Determined to follow her dreams, Welch graduated from La Jolla High School in 1958 and enrolled at San Diego State College on a scholarship that fall. The year after that, she married her high school sweetheart and first husband, James Welch, and worked off campus as a San Diego weather forecaster for KFMB TV. The couple had two children, Damon and Tahnee Welch, before the marriage dissolved in 1961. Following the split, Welch moved briefly to Dallas with her children before returning to Los Angeles to pursue film full-time. Her early, minor roles included an episode of “Bewitched” (1964) and with Elvis Presley in “Roustabout” the same year. Her first contract film, a 1966 remake of “One Million B.C.,” solidified her role as a sex symbol when she struck an infamous pose in a prehistoric animal-skin bikini that evolved into a best-selling poster. Her leading role in “Fantastic Voyage” (1966) catapulted her into international stardom, and Playboy later named her “Most Desired Woman” of the 1970s. In an effort to pursue more serious roles, Welch appeared as a transsexual heroine in 1970’s “Myra Breckinridge” and in controversial sex scenes with African-American athlete Jim Brown in “100 Rifles” (1969). After launching her own television show “Raquel!” in 1970, Welch dabbled with careers in pop singing, a one-woman nightclub musical act in Las Vegas and a Broadway musical. More recently, Welch appeared in a cameo on the popular television series “Seinfeld” and American television comedy “Welcome to the Captain.” With the release of her new book, Welch, long wary of the media, hopes to set the record straight and dispel her legacy as one of the film industry’s most enduring sex symbols. “Although this book is not intended to be an autobiography, I feel the need to let you in on who is lurking behind the loincloth,” she writes. “It’s me, Raquel: a woman not unlike you in many ways and singular in others. Like we all are. Hello there! Nice to meet you.” Following a separation with her fourth husband, Richard Palmer, Welch wrote in “Beyond the Cleavage,” “I don’t think I’m a good candidate for wifedom. I like my independence too much.” Her book also includes a nostalgic recollection of her high school years in La Jolla. “I enrolled in La Jolla High School, which was only three blocks away from the famous Windansea surfing beach!” she wrote. “From the high school’s second-story windows, my classmates could check out the coastline to see if the surf was up.” Adrian Newell, buyer and manager on the book side of Warwick’s, said that she considers Welch a positive role model for women, especially as they approach middle age. “She exudes so much confidence,” Newell said. “She sends a really great message to our youth-obsessed culture that it’s not about the number. It’s about how you see yourself and the world.” Newell, 54, also said she “couldn’t believe how great” Welch looked. “It’s phenomenal,” she said. “She talks a lot about all the aspects of taking care of yourself — mentally, physically, and emotionally. She takes care of the whole package, and that positive energy she feels exhibits itself in the way she looks.” Considering Welch’s local roots, Newell said the size of the crowd and duration people were willing to wait for a meeting did not surprise her. “She’s a great role model, and I think a lot of people here know her from childhood and high school,” she said.