The Beach Boys and the California Myth
| Author | David Leaf |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subject | The Beach Boys |
| Publisher | Grosset & Dunlap |
Publication date | 1978 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Pages | 192 |
| ISBN | 978-0448146256 |
| OCLC | 4333916 |
The Beach Boys and the California Myth is a 1978 biography of the Beach Boys that was written by the American author David Leaf, editor and creator of the Pet Sounds fanzine. It was the first full-length book written about the band and an early piece of writing that revealed much of their internal conflicts and family history.
The book was influential in cementing a popular narrative of the band – one that caricatured Brian Wilson as a tortured genius. Later biographies, including Heroes and Villains (1986) and Catch a Wave (2006), drew heavily from Leaf's book. Revised editions have been published in 1985 as The Beach Boys and in 2022 as God Only Knows: The Story of Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys and the California Myth.