This latest work is populated with characters seeking clean slates, trying to break free from substance abuse or toxic relationships, only to witness hope devolve into aggression. Chris Kraus frequently uses the phrase "fresh start", rendering it intentionally weary through constant reiteration. Phrases such as "He could make a fresh start" and "They opted for a clean break" are scattered across the story. And yet, Kraus herself is embarking on her own fresh start, as this seems a novel form of writing – documentarian, genuinely novelistic. However it reveals itself to be packed with the recurring issues and approaches as her previous works.
From Unplanned Author to Renowned Book
Kraus was originally an artist who became a writer almost accidentally with her 1997 groundbreaking book I Love Dick, structured as epistles to an unresponsive love interest, elevating intimate women's literature from humiliation into defiance. She continued writing, but the next trio of fascinating and rebarbative novels lacked the power and directness that the correspondence format infused into the tone of I Love Dick. Compounding this was her position as a renegade artist who had evolved into a major property owner, so there was significant attention on housing investments. It follows that she currently desires to experiment with different types of content, looking outwards to the experiences of others, at a moment when she asserts that contemporary political climate turns intimate literature unnecessary.
Several Eras, Collective Unavoidable Background
The Four Spent the Day Together is structured in three parts, spanning multiple eras – all unable to escape their backgrounds. The book includes the narrative about Emma and Jasper, representations of Kraus's parents, moving from the urban environment to a pastoral setting. Then there is the account of Kraus, in the character of a figure named Catt Greene, reckoning with the belated success of I Love Dick, the rise of Trump, and her addict husband a man named Paul. And there is the account of a killing of one lost young man by another in a town long abandoned by forward-thinking policies only a brief drive from the protagonist's home in a remote part of Minnesota.
From my perspective as a reader attracted to polished prose of the sort the author herself tends to eschew, I was captivated by the novelistic voice of the initial segment.
As a reader drawn to precise prose of the style that Kraus usually avoids, I was captivated by the literary tone of the initial part. It exhibits a fresh level of observation that makes room for trivial aspects, like the bucket that the young Catt frees from the ice at the opening of the book, helped by her cherished parent. "I found an ice toy!" she declares; "a nice toy", he answers, "the ambiguous meanings of language rolling around in their mouths like piece candy". The author narrates Emma's narrative with curiosity and intimacy. "It seemed to Emma she had entered a dream – not precisely her dream."
Letdown and Fragmentation
I was bound to become frustrated when I hoped this fresh tone could persist to the end. The author states here that she dislikes the pleasure those who appreciate polished prose have taken from I Love Dick; she's dedicated to disjunction, to the messy artistic approach she echoes from her idol author Kathy Acker, and the void and recurrence of her past books comes back in the second segment. The protagonist is working on refurbishing multiple decrepit residences in the most troubled areas of Albuquerque while shuttling between two different states, unable to aid Paul manage his alcohol use. She experiences powerlessness as her spouse transitions between low-resource employment as an addiction therapist in a world propelled by the rage and anxiety that drives a political win. A significant portion discusses about Catt's social media ostracism on Twitter, her listed profession modified from "author" to "landlord" on the online encyclopedia. She still gives the impression to care a little too much about this. At one point she remarks that she's researching the homicide so that before exiting the region, "she might be able to learn something about an the United States that her online critics would fail to comprehend, would overlook entirely".
The Murder Narrative
So then we come to the actual killing – and the titular day passed by the deceased with the killer and his friends. The author possesses compelling foundational content, and details moment by moment what transpired when a man named Brandon came to visit Brittney after encountering her on a platform where she marketed explicit images. He anticipated intimacy but seems affably to have spent the day with her companions, mooching around fixing his automobile and funding treats and narcotics, before being shot by Brittney's partner Micah – a youth with psychological issues who has repeatedly received inpatient care for violent rage.
Preoccupation and Open Ends
The protagonist becomes fixated by the story, and I was intrigued by the way that Kraus's dual urges towards accurate chronicling and daring boundary-pushing tussle in this section. Yet I wished her to explore more thoroughly her own obsessions here. The most interesting character is Brittney, who becomes vivid partly through the protagonist's connection to her – yet another intelligent, harassed young woman derailing in a difficult, overlooked locality. The author informs us that the protagonist communicates with Brittney in jail, but she fails to enact these dialogues. This entire part feels curiously unresolved, to the point that the author's storytelling ends almost mid-par
