The genre of the novel is defined as “mainstream experimental.” The action takes place in the early 1950s. A young guy, Stuart Hadley, lives in the Californian town of Oakland and works as a salesman in a radio electronics store. At first glance, his life is close to the philistine ideal: a good house, a pretty wife, a decent job with prospects for advancement. But the hero experiences internal discomfort, something is missing in his life. The fact is that Hadley is a romantic by nature, philistine happiness is not for him. He first tries to extinguish the internal heat with alcohol and promiscuous sexual relations, then with religious fanaticism, but everything is useless. Stewart feels that he is gradually starting to go crazy...

This book is actually Dick's first major work, created by him around 1953. Partially autobiographical in nature, Voices from the Streets is the only novel by the famous science fiction writer that has never been published. Dick's creative legacy included several more unpublished books, whose manuscripts, however, were lost for various reasons.