The new book is populated with characters chasing after fresh starts, struggling to escape substance abuse or abusive marriages, only to witness hope devolve into conflict. Chris Kraus frequently uses the phrase "fresh start", making it deliberately jaded through constant reiteration. Examples include "He could make a fresh start" and "They opted for a clean break" recur in the narrative. At the same time, the author herself appears to be undertaking her own fresh start, as this presents as a different type of work – observational, genuinely novelistic. However it turns out to be filled with the familiar conflicts and approaches as past novels.
From Unplanned Author to Renowned Book
Kraus began as an artist who became a writer unintentionally with her 1997 groundbreaking book I Love Dick, structured as letters to an unreceptive lover, converting personal female narrative from abjection into assassination. She kept producing books, but the following three engaging and challenging novels did not possess the shock and immediacy that the correspondence format brought to the voice of I Love Dick. This was not aided by was her identity as a renegade artist who had become a major property owner, so there was considerable focus on real estate deals. It follows that she now wants to try out fresh narrative sources, looking outwards to external narratives, at a moment when she claims that current political era renders personal narrative unnecessary.
Three Generations, One Unescapable Past
The Four Spent the Day Together is divided into three sections, encompassing three generations – all unable to escape their backgrounds. We encounter the story of characters Emma and Jasper, representations of Kraus's parents, moving from the New York borough to the Connecticut countryside. Then there is the account of Kraus, in the persona of Catt Greene, reckoning with the delayed acclaim of I Love Dick, the ascent of a political figure, and her substance-dependent spouse her husband Paul. And there is the story of the murder of one troubled youth by another in a community mostly forsaken by liberal ideals only a short distance from Catt's rural residence in rural Minnesota.
From my perspective as a reader drawn to refined literature of the kind Kraus herself often avoids, I was captivated by the novelistic voice of the first section.
Being a reader who appreciates honed writing of the kind that Kraus often disregards, I was seduced by the literary tone of the initial part. It exhibits a novel degree of detail that allows space for trivial aspects, like the pail that the youthful Catt dislodges from ice at the opening of the book, aided by her adored dad. "I found an ice toy!" she declares; "a lovely toy", he answers, "the elliptical meanings of words tumbling in their mouths like sweet treats". Kraus writes the tale of Emma with interest and closeness. "Emma felt like she'd stepped into a dream – not entirely her own."
Letdown and Fragmentation
I was destined to be disappointed when I hoped this different style could last out the book. The author states here that she dislikes the satisfaction audiences such as myself have gotten from I Love Dick; she's devoted to disruption, to the messy artistic approach she shares with her inspiration Kathy Acker, and the void and recurrence of her past books comes back in the central part. Catt Greene is working on refurbishing three dozen dilapidated units in the city's most challenging districts while traveling between two different states, unsuccessful in assisting Paul control his drinking. She is overwhelmed as Paul transitions between poorly supported positions as an recovery specialist in a world propelled by the anger and fear that underpins a political win. Multiple pages are devoted about Catt's social media ostracism on Twitter, her occupation changed from "writer" to "property owner" on Wikipedia. Kraus still seems to care a little too much about this. At one point she says that she's investigating the murder so that before departing the state, "she may grasp something about an the nation that her Twitter detractors would be unable to grasp, would overlook entirely".
The Murder Narrative
Then we reach to the actual killing – and the eponymous day experienced by the murdered individual with the killer and his friends. Kraus has excellent raw material, and details moment by moment what occurred as Brandon came to meet Brittney after encountering her on a platform where she offered adult photos. He sought a sexual encounter but appears congenially to have passed the day in the company of her associates, loitering having his vehicle repaired and paying for snacks and drugs, before being shot by Brittney's partner a man named Micah – a youth with psychological issues who has repeatedly received inpatient care for violent rage.
Obsession and Unfinished Business
Catt gets obsessed by the narrative, and I was fascinated by the way that her twin drives towards accurate chronicling and audacious rule-breaking tussle in this section. However, I would have preferred her to explore more thoroughly her individual preoccupations here. The standout figure is Brittney, who comes alive in part due to Catt seeing herself in her – another bright, bullied girl derailing in a struggling, neglected community. The author informs us that Catt converses with Brittney in prison, but she fails to enact these dialogues. The complete segment feels oddly unfinished, to the point that Kraus's narration ends almost mid-par
