The Street That Wasn't There

"The Street That Wasn't There" by Clifford D. Simak and Carl Jacobi is a science fiction story set in a world where reality itself is coming undone. An odd and secluded man, Mr. Jonathon Chambers, lives a simple and lonely life that is upended when parts of his city start to disappear. The story explores ideas about how we view the world and the strength of shared beliefs, showing how fragile our reality can be. Mr. Chambers, who follows the same routine each day, is shocked when he discovers that places he knows well are just gone. Thinking back to a book he wrote long ago about how people's minds shape what is real, he wonders if the vanishing world is tied to a deadly disease that's wiping out humanity. As everything around him fades into nothing, Mr. Chambers must fight to hold onto his identity and the life he knows as he faces the growing emptiness by himself.