The Four Spent the Day Together is populated with individuals pursuing fresh starts, attempting to leave behind addictions or toxic relationships, only to witness hope devolve into aggression. Kraus frequently uses the phrase "fresh start", rendering it intentionally weary through recurring use. Phrases such as "He aimed to start over" and "They opted for a clean break" recur in the text. At the same time, the author herself is embarking on her individual reinvention, since this presents as a different type of work – fact-based, authentically narrative. Yet it turns out to be filled with the recurring issues and aesthetics as her previous works.
From Accidental Writer to Cult Classic
Kraus began as an creative who entered the literary world unintentionally with her 1997 groundbreaking book I Love Dick, which was composed of letters to an unreceptive lover, transforming personal female narrative from self-debasement into defiance. She persisted as a writer, but the next trio of compelling and abrasive novels did not possess the impact and rawness that the correspondence format brought to the tone of I Love Dick. It didn't help was her role as a nonconformist creator who had evolved into a extensive real estate holder, so there was considerable focus on real estate deals. It is logical that she now wants to experiment with fresh narrative sources, directing her gaze to other people's stories, at a period in which she states that Trumpian politics makes confessional writing obsolete.
Three Generations, Shared Inescapable History
The Four Spent the Day Together is divided into three sections, spanning three generations – none able to break free from their histories. The book includes the story of characters Emma and Jasper, representations of Kraus's parents, moving from the urban environment to rural Connecticut. There is the story of Kraus herself, in the persona of Catt Greene, grappling with the delayed acclaim of I Love Dick, the rise of Trump, and her partner struggling with addiction Paul. The third thread involves the account of a killing of one lost young man by another in a community mostly forsaken by progressive politics only a short distance from Catt's cottage in rural Minnesota.
From my perspective as a reader drawn to honed writing of the sort Kraus herself typically rejects, I was enchanted by the novelistic voice of the first section.
Being a reader who appreciates precise prose of the kind that Kraus herself often disregards, I was seduced by the literary tone of the first section. It exhibits a fresh level of observation that allows space for trivial aspects, like the container that the young Catt frees from the ice at the start of the story, helped by her adored dad. "I discovered a frozen plaything!" she exclaims; "a lovely toy", he replies, "the elliptical meanings of words rolling around in their mouths like sweet treats". She tells Emma's story with interest and closeness. "Emma felt like she'd stepped into a dream – not precisely her dream."
Letdown and Fragmentation
I was bound to become frustrated when I wished this different style could last out the book. Kraus says here that she dislikes the satisfaction readers like me have taken from I Love Dick; she's dedicated to disruption, to the messy artistic approach she echoes from her hero author Kathy Acker, and the blankness and repetitiveness of her earlier works returns in the central part. Catt Greene is attempting to do up three dozen dilapidated units in the city's most challenging districts while moving between the Midwest and the West Coast, unable to aid Paul control his drinking. She is overwhelmed as her spouse cycles through poorly supported positions as an addiction therapist in a world driven by the rage and anxiety that underpins a political win. There are several pages about Catt's social media ostracism on Twitter, her professional designation altered from "writer" to "landlord" on a reference site. The author still appears to care a little too much about this. On one occasion she remarks that she's investigating the murder so that before departing the state, "she may grasp something about an America that her Twitter detractors would fail to comprehend, would not even see".
The Murder Narrative
So then we come to the homicide in question – and the eponymous day passed by the deceased with the murderer and his companions. Kraus utilizes excellent raw material, and details moment by moment what occurred as Brandon came to see Brittney after connecting via an application where she offered adult photos. He sought a sexual encounter but appears congenially to have passed the day with her companions, loitering having his vehicle repaired and covering the cost of food and substances, before being murdered by Brittney's boyfriend Micah – a individual with mental health challenges who has repeatedly received inpatient care for aggressive outbursts.
Obsession and Unfinished Business
Catt develops an obsession by the narrative, and I was intrigued by the way that the author's conflicting impulses towards ethical reporting and daring boundary-pushing wrestle in this part. Yet I wished her to explore more thoroughly her individual preoccupations here. The most interesting character is Brittney herself, who becomes vivid partly through the protagonist's connection to her – yet another intelligent, harassed young woman derailing in a troubled, forgotten town. The author informs us that the protagonist communicates with Brittney in detention, but she omits the dramatization of these talks. The whole section feels curiously unresolved, to the degree that the author's storytelling ends almost mid-par
