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The new book is populated with characters pursuing fresh starts, attempting to leave behind addictions or harmful partnerships, only to find hope curdling into violence. Kraus frequently uses the phrase "clean slate", transforming it into willfully cynical through constant reiteration. Phrases such as "He could make a fresh start" and "They opted for a clean break" are scattered across the text. Meanwhile, the author herself is embarking on her own fresh start, since this seems a novel form of writing – observational, authentically narrative. But then it reveals itself to be filled with the same dilemmas and approaches as her previous works.

From Accidental Writer to Cult Classic

Chris Kraus started out as an visual artist who entered the literary world unintentionally with her 1997 groundbreaking book I Love Dick, which was composed of letters to an unreceptive lover, converting personal female narrative from humiliation into defiance. She persisted as a writer, but the following three compelling and abrasive novels did not possess the power and directness that the correspondence format infused into the tone of I Love Dick. Compounding this was her identity as a maverick maker who had turned into a major property owner, so there was significant attention on housing investments. It is logical that she presently aims to experiment with new kinds of material, turning outward to the experiences of others, at a moment when she claims that contemporary political climate turns intimate literature unnecessary.

Three Generations, Shared Inescapable History

The Four Spent the Day Together is organized into a trio of segments, spanning three generations – all unable to escape their histories. There is the tale of Emma and Jasper, versions of the author's parents, transitioning from the urban environment to rural Connecticut. There is the account of Kraus, in the guise of protagonist Catt Greene, grappling with the late recognition of I Love Dick, the emergence of Trump, and her substance-dependent spouse Paul. And there is the account of a killing of one directionless individual by another in a locality long abandoned by liberal ideals only 80 miles from Catt's rural residence in rural Minnesota.

From my perspective as a reader fond of refined literature of the type the author herself tends to eschew, I was captivated by the novelistic voice of the opening part.

Being a reader drawn to precise prose of the kind that Kraus tends to eschew, I was captivated by the novelistic voice of the initial part. It possesses a novel degree of detail that makes room for trivial aspects, like the pail that the youthful Catt frees from the ice at the opening of the book, helped by her adored dad. "I found an ice toy!" she says; "a great plaything", he replies, "the nuanced interpretations of terms circulating in their speech like hard candy". She tells Emma's story with curiosity and intimacy. "It seemed to Emma she had entered a dream – not precisely her dream."

Frustration and Disruption

I was fated to feel let down when I expected this fresh tone could continue through the novel. The author states here that she resents the enjoyment those who appreciate polished prose have derived from I Love Dick; she's dedicated to disjunction, to the untidy aesthetics she shares with her idol author Kathy Acker, and the blankness and repetitiveness of her earlier works returns in the middle section. Catt is working on refurbishing three dozen dilapidated units in Albuquerque's worst neighbourhoods while traveling between the Midwest and the West Coast, unsuccessful in assisting Paul control his drinking. She is overwhelmed as Paul cycles through underfunded jobs as an addiction therapist in a world driven by the anger and fear that drives an electoral success. There are several pages about the protagonist facing cancellation on social media, her occupation changed from "author" to "property owner" on the online encyclopedia. The author still appears to be overly concerned about this. On one occasion she states that she's looking into the killing so that before exiting the region, "she might be able to learn something about an the United States that her social media opponents would be unable to grasp, would not even see".

The Killing Story

Then we reach to the murder itself – and the titular day experienced by the deceased with the killer and his companions. The author possesses great source material, and details moment by moment what occurred as Brandon came to visit Brittney after connecting via an application where she marketed explicit images. He sought a sexual encounter but seems affably to have spent the day with her companions, wandering about fixing his automobile and funding treats and narcotics, before being killed by gunfire by her romantic interest Micah – a young, mentally ill man who has often been institutionalized for violent rage.

Fascination and Incompletion

Catt develops an obsession by the story, and I was fascinated by the way that Kraus's dual urges towards ethical reporting and reckless transgression wrestle in this part. But I'd have liked her to delve deeper into her own obsessions here. The compelling persona is Brittney herself, who gains dimension partially because of Catt's identification with her – yet another intelligent, harassed young woman spiraling out of control in a struggling, neglected community. Kraus notes that the protagonist communicates with Brittney in detention, but she doesn't dramatise these conversations. The whole section feels strangely incomplete, to the point that Kraus's narration ends almost mid-par