The new book is populated with individuals pursuing fresh starts, attempting to leave behind drugs or toxic relationships, only to witness hope devolve into aggression. Chris Kraus repeatedly invokes the phrase "clean slate", transforming it into deliberately jaded through its repetitions. Examples include "He aimed to start over" and "They opted for a clean break" are scattered across the narrative. Meanwhile, she seems to be making her own fresh start, because this presents as a new kind of book – documentarian, authentically narrative. However it reveals itself to be laden with the same dilemmas and approaches as past novels.
From Chance Novelist to Cult Classic
The writer started out as an artist who became a writer somewhat by chance with her 1997 groundbreaking book I Love Dick, which was composed of missives to a distant beloved, transforming intimate women's literature from self-debasement into defiance. She kept producing books, but the three subsequent compelling and abrasive novels lacked the shock and immediacy that the epistolary style imparted to the voice of I Love Dick. Compounding this was her identity as a maverick maker who had become a large-scale low-rent landlord, so there was considerable focus on housing investments. It makes sense that she currently desires to explore new kinds of material, turning outward to the experiences of others, at a time when she asserts that Trumpian politics makes confessional writing unnecessary.
Several Eras, Shared Inescapable History
The Four Spent the Day Together is structured in three parts, spanning several time periods – none able to break free from their histories. The book includes the narrative about characters Emma and Jasper, based on the author's parents, moving from the Bronx to the Connecticut countryside. Additionally the narrative of the author, in the guise of a figure named Catt Greene, confronting the belated success of I Love Dick, the ascent of a political figure, and her partner struggling with addiction Paul. Finally the account of a killing of one lost young man by another in a community largely deserted by forward-thinking policies only a short distance from Catt's rural residence in rural Minnesota.
For this reader drawn to honed writing of the type Kraus herself often avoids, I was seduced by the novelistic voice of the first section.
As a reader who favors honed writing of the style that the author usually avoids, I was captivated by the literary tone of the initial part. It possesses a novel degree of detail that makes room for small details, like the bucket that the young Catt frees from the ice at the opening of the book, aided by her adored dad. "I discovered a frozen plaything!" she exclaims; "a great plaything", he replies, "the elliptical meanings of words rolling around in their mouths like sweet treats". Kraus writes Emma's story with inquiry and familiarity. "Emma felt like she'd stepped into a dream – not entirely her own."
Letdown and Fragmentation
I was destined to be disappointed when I expected this fresh tone could last out the book. Kraus notes here that she is annoyed by the satisfaction those who appreciate polished prose have taken from I Love Dick; she's committed to disruption, to the untidy aesthetics she has in common with her inspiration Kathy Acker, and the void and recurrence of her previous novels returns in the second segment. Catt is working on refurbishing 36 run-down apartments in Albuquerque's worst neighbourhoods while moving between the Midwest and the West Coast, failing to help Paul curb his addiction. She is overwhelmed as her spouse transitions between poorly supported positions as an recovery specialist in a environment fueled by the anger and fear that drives a political win. A significant portion discusses about Catt being cancelled on social media, her listed profession modified from "novelist" to "landlord" on the online encyclopedia. The author still appears to care a little too much about this. At one point she states that she's investigating the murder so that before exiting the region, "she might be able to learn something about an the United States that her Twitter detractors would be unable to grasp, would not even see".
The Killing Story
Then we reach to the actual killing – and the referenced day experienced by the victim with the killer and his friends. Kraus has excellent raw material, and knows hour by hour what occurred as a man named Brandon came to see Brittney after connecting via an application where she marketed explicit images. He sought a sexual encounter but seems amiably to have occupied the day in the company of her associates, wandering about having his vehicle repaired and funding treats and narcotics, before being shot by Brittney's partner Micah – a youth with psychological issues who has frequently been hospitalised for violent rage.
Obsession and Unfinished Business
The protagonist becomes fixated by the account, and I was fascinated by the way that Kraus's dual urges towards accurate chronicling and reckless transgression wrestle in this part. However, I would have preferred her to explore more thoroughly her individual preoccupations here. The most interesting character is Brittney, who gains dimension partially because of Catt's identification with her – another bright, bullied girl spiraling out of control in a difficult, overlooked locality. The author informs us that the protagonist communicates with Brittney in jail, but she doesn't dramatise these conversations. The complete segment feels strangely incomplete, to the degree that her narrative ends almost mid-par
