The new book centers on protagonists pursuing new beginnings, attempting to leave behind substance abuse or harmful partnerships, only to see hope turn into aggression. The author often employs the phrase "clean slate", transforming it into deliberately jaded through its repetitions. Phrases such as "He was ready for a new beginning" and "They opted for a clean break" are scattered across the text. Meanwhile, she seems to be making her personal new beginning, as this seems a novel form of writing – observational, truly literary. But then it reveals itself to be filled with the same dilemmas and styles as her previous works.
From Chance Novelist to Renowned Book
Kraus was originally an artist who transitioned to writing almost accidentally with her 1997 seminal work I Love Dick, which was composed of epistles to an unresponsive love interest, converting personal female narrative from abjection into assassination. She persisted as a writer, but the next trio of fascinating and rebarbative novels did not possess the impact and rawness that the epistolary style infused into the tone of I Love Dick. Compounding this was her role as a maverick maker who had turned into a extensive real estate holder, so there was significant attention on real estate deals. It follows that she now wants to experiment with different types of content, directing her gaze to other people's stories, at a time when she asserts that current political era renders personal narrative obsolete.
Several Eras, Shared Inescapable History
The Four Spent the Day Together is organized into a trio of segments, spanning several time periods – none able to break free from their pasts. We encounter the narrative about Emma and Jasper, representations of her own mother and father, relocating from the Bronx to rural Connecticut. Additionally the narrative of the author, in the character of Catt Greene, confronting the delayed acclaim 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 directionless individual by another in a town long abandoned by progressive politics only a short distance from Catt's cottage in rural Minnesota.
From my perspective as a reader attracted to honed writing of the sort the author herself tends to eschew, I was captivated by the novelistic voice of the first section.
As a reader who favors honed writing of the variety that Kraus usually avoids, I was won over by the novelistic voice of the first section. It possesses a fresh level of observation that makes room for trivial aspects, like the container that the youthful Catt frees from the ice at the beginning of the narrative, helped by her beloved father. "Look, an ice toy!" she exclaims; "a great plaything", he replies, "the ambiguous meanings of language rolling around in their mouths like piece candy". The author narrates Emma's narrative with interest and closeness. "Emma experienced a dreamlike sensation – not hers, exactly."
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 resents the enjoyment those who appreciate polished prose have gotten from I Love Dick; she's dedicated to disruption, to the messy artistic approach she has in common with her hero Kathy Acker, and the emptiness and redundancy of her previous novels comes back in the middle section. Catt is working on refurbishing multiple decrepit residences in the city's most challenging districts while traveling between two different states, failing to help Paul curb his addiction. She is overwhelmed as Paul moves between underfunded jobs as an recovery specialist in a environment propelled by the hostility and dread that powers a political win. There are several pages about Catt's social media ostracism on social media, her listed profession modified from "writer" to "property owner" on Wikipedia. Kraus still seems to care a little too much about this. In a moment she states that she's looking into the killing so that before exiting the region, "she could potentially understand something about an the nation that her Twitter detractors would fail to comprehend, would not even see".
The Murder Narrative
Then we reach to the murder itself – and the eponymous day passed by the deceased with the perpetrator and his friends. Kraus utilizes great source material, and details moment by moment what transpired when a man named Brandon came to meet Brittney after connecting via an application where she sold sex pictures. He anticipated intimacy but seems amiably to have occupied the day in the company of her associates, wandering about having his vehicle repaired and covering the cost of food and substances, before being murdered by Brittney's boyfriend Micah – a youth with psychological issues who has often been institutionalized for aggressive outbursts.
Fascination and Incompletion
Catt develops an obsession by the account, and I was fascinated by the way that Kraus's dual urges towards accurate chronicling and daring boundary-pushing tussle in this section. However, I would have preferred her to delve deeper into her personal fixations here. The standout figure is Brittney, who comes alive partially because of Catt seeing herself in her – yet another intelligent, harassed young woman going off the rails in a struggling, neglected community. Kraus tells us that Catt speaks to Brittney in jail, but she omits the dramatization of these talks. The complete segment feels oddly unfinished, to the point that the author's storytelling ends almost mid-par
