Josh Brolin, an Academy Award-nominated actor, said he has been writing for years and has filled nearly 90 journals with stories, plays and poetry that fill three bins at his home. His new memoir, however, was just the first book that he tried to get published.

On Thursday, residents and fans gathered at Chaucer’s Books on State Street in Santa Barbara to hear him read excerpts from the memoir, “From Under the Truck.”

Brolin said his new book is not the traditional memoir where he details his life from movie to movie or marriage to marriage. He chose to show the messy side of life and that people can come out the other side.

“It’s not meant to be a book of victim at all. People perceive my life as being a certain thing, which is usually really inaccurate,” he said.

The book covers his time growing up in Montecito, his relationship with his mother, and running with different groups in what he called a “destructive time.”

Brolin said his motivation for arranging the meeting at Chaucer’s comes from his history with the store and its owners.

His connection to Chaucer’s Books goes back to the 1980s when he lived in the Santa Barbara and Montecito area. The appearance was Brolin’s idea and something he wanted to do himself as a longtime fan of the store.

Brolin grew up hiding his love of bookstores from his friends. As a kid growing up in the punk rock scene, he kept things such as his love of reading or the band Journey to himself.

“My solace was reading, and I’d hide in bookstores and do my thing,” Brolin said. “I was here from ’79 to ’84, and then the minute we moved back, we started coming to Chaucer’s right away.”

A group of more than 40 people filled the front of the bookstore waiting for Brolin to make his appearance. During the event, he read from his book, answered questions, and finished the night by signing copies for the crowd.

During the appearance, Brolin read excerpts of his life. The accounts included a story of his mom hanging out at gas stations in her jean jacket as she jokingly harassed truckers twice her size.

Other stories described him teaching his daughter to swim or his teenage adventures of him and his friends taking drugs for the first time.

Brolin said writing the book and telling its stories is part of a phase of his life where he wants to try new things and experiment. His goal for the future is to write more, direct, and take on more dangerous acting roles.

“I know that there was a shift in mentality in what I wanted to put out there, and I want to make it memorable for myself,” Brolin said.

Jen Lemberger, a co-owner of Chaucer’s Books, said the store tried not to go overboard when it announced that Brolin would be making an appearance. Instead, the bookstore framed the event as a meeting with a local writer.

“This just happens to be a local author and actor, so really focusing on his memoir and his book side of things as opposed to his acting, which is very clearly part of his memoir,” Lemberger said.

Chris Shrake, who attended the event with a friend, said he found out about the appearance through Instagram.

“I think Josh having a local connection and spending time in Montecito just kind of brings it home,” he said.