The new book centers on individuals seeking new beginnings, attempting to leave behind drugs or abusive marriages, only to find hope curdling into conflict. Chris Kraus often employs the phrase "fresh start", rendering it intentionally weary through its repetitions. Phrases such as "He was ready for a new beginning" and "They opted for a clean break" are scattered across the story. And yet, the author herself appears to be undertaking her individual reinvention, as this appears a different type of work – documentarian, genuinely novelistic. But then it turns out to be packed with the recurring issues and approaches as past novels.
From Chance Novelist to Iconic Work
Chris Kraus was originally an visual artist who became a writer somewhat by chance with her 1997 seminal work I Love Dick, structured as missives to a distant beloved, transforming confessional female writing from humiliation into assassination. She continued writing, but the next trio of engaging and challenging novels did not possess the shock and immediacy that the correspondence format brought to the narrative voice of I Love Dick. It didn't help was her role as a renegade artist who had turned into a major property owner, so there was significant attention on real estate deals. It is logical that she now wants to try out different types of content, looking outwards to other people's stories, at a period in which she states that current political era renders personal narrative obsolete.
Multiple Generations, One Unescapable Past
The Four Spent the Day Together is divided into three sections, encompassing multiple eras – each trapped by their histories. We encounter the story of Emma and Jasper, based on the author's parents, transitioning from the urban environment to a pastoral setting. There is the narrative of the author, in the persona of a figure named Catt Greene, confronting the belated success of I Love Dick, the rise of Trump, and her addict husband a man named Paul. The third thread involves the account of a killing of one troubled youth by another in a locality long abandoned by progressive politics only a short distance from the protagonist's home in the Minnesota countryside.
From my perspective as a reader fond of polished prose of the sort the author herself typically rejects, I was captivated by the novelistic voice of the opening part.
As a reader who favors precise prose of the style that Kraus often disregards, I was won over by the literary tone of the initial part. It exhibits a new quality of attentiveness that makes room for small details, like the pail that the young Catt frees from the ice at the opening of the book, aided by her adored dad. "I found an ice toy!" she declares; "a great plaything", he answers, "the elliptical meanings of words circulating in their speech like hard candy". The author narrates the tale of Emma with inquiry and familiarity. "Emma experienced a dreamlike sensation – not precisely her dream."
Disappointment and Disjunction
I was fated to feel let down when I wished this different style could last out the book. Kraus notes here that she is annoyed by the enjoyment those who appreciate polished prose have gotten from I Love Dick; she's devoted to disruption, to the messy artistic approach she has in common with her hero Kathy Acker, and the blankness and repetitiveness of her past books comes back in the middle section. Catt Greene is attempting to do up three dozen dilapidated units in the most troubled areas of Albuquerque while shuttling between Minnesota and LA, unable to aid Paul manage his alcohol use. She feels helpless as Paul moves between underfunded jobs as an recovery specialist in a world propelled by the rage and anxiety that underpins Trump's victory. There are several pages about Catt's social media ostracism on Twitter, her occupation changed from "novelist" to "property owner" on Wikipedia. The author still appears to be overly concerned about this. On one occasion she says that she's investigating the murder so that before departing the state, "she could potentially understand something about an America that her social media opponents would fail to comprehend, would not even see".
The Homicide Account
Then we reach to the homicide in question – and the referenced day experienced by the deceased with the perpetrator and his associates. Kraus has excellent raw material, and details moment by moment what happened when the victim Brandon came to visit Brittney after meeting her on an app where she offered adult photos. He sought a sexual encounter but seems amiably to have occupied the day in the company of her associates, wandering about getting his car mended and paying for snacks and drugs, before being shot by her romantic interest Micah – a youth with psychological issues who has often been institutionalized for fits of anger.
Obsession and Unfinished Business
Catt develops an obsession by the account, and I found myself captivated by the way that her twin drives towards ethical reporting and audacious rule-breaking wrestle in this part. But I'd have liked her to go further into her personal fixations here. The standout figure is Brittney herself, who comes alive in part due to the protagonist's connection to her – a similarly gifted, tormented individual spiraling out of control in a struggling, neglected community. Kraus notes that the protagonist communicates with Brittney in jail, but she doesn't dramatise these conversations. This entire part feels curiously unresolved, to the point that her narrative ends almost mid-par
