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The new book is populated with protagonists chasing after new beginnings, trying to break free from addictions or harmful partnerships, only to witness hope devolve into aggression. The author frequently uses the phrase "clean slate", making it deliberately jaded through recurring use. Examples include "He aimed to start over" and "They decided to make a fresh start" recur in the story. And yet, she is embarking on her individual reinvention, since this appears a novel form of writing – documentarian, truly literary. Yet it turns out to be laden with the same dilemmas and aesthetics as past novels.

From Chance Novelist to Renowned Book

Kraus was originally an artist who became a writer somewhat by chance with her 1997 groundbreaking book I Love Dick, made up of letters to an unreceptive lover, transforming confessional female writing from self-debasement 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 imparted to the voice of I Love Dick. Compounding this was her role as a maverick maker who had become a major property owner, so there was significant attention on property transactions. It is logical that she now wants to explore fresh narrative sources, turning outward to the experiences of others, at a period in which she states that Trumpian politics makes confessional writing obsolete.

Three Generations, Collective Unavoidable Background

The Four Spent the Day Together is organized into a trio of segments, spanning multiple eras – none able to break free from their histories. The book includes the tale of Emma and Jasper, versions of the author's parents, moving from the urban environment to a pastoral setting. Then there is the narrative of the author, in the character of protagonist Catt Greene, grappling with the late recognition of I Love Dick, the ascent of a political figure, and her addict husband her husband Paul. And there is the story of the murder of one troubled youth by another in a community largely deserted by forward-thinking policies only 80 miles from Catt's cottage in rural Minnesota.

From my perspective as a reader attracted to honed writing of the kind Kraus herself typically rejects, I was seduced by the novelistic voice of the first section.

As someone who reads drawn to honed writing of the style that the author usually avoids, I was won over by the literary tone of the initial part. It exhibits a fresh level of observation that accommodates trivial aspects, like the container that the youthful Catt frees from the ice at the opening of the book, helped by her beloved father. "I found an ice toy!" she exclaims; "a nice toy", he answers, "the ambiguous meanings of language circulating in their speech like piece candy". She tells Emma's narrative with inquiry and familiarity. "It seemed to Emma she had entered a dream – not entirely her own."

Frustration and Disruption

I was destined to be disappointed when I hoped this different style could continue through the novel. Kraus notes here that she dislikes the satisfaction audiences such as myself have derived from I Love Dick; she's committed to disjunction, to the unpolished style she echoes from her idol writer Kathy Acker, and the blankness and repetitiveness of her past books comes back in the second segment. The protagonist is attempting to do up three dozen dilapidated units in Albuquerque's worst neighbourhoods while traveling between the Midwest and the West Coast, unable to aid Paul curb his addiction. She is overwhelmed as her spouse transitions between poorly supported positions as an recovery specialist in a society driven by the rage and anxiety that drives an electoral success. A significant portion discusses about Catt being cancelled on Twitter, her listed profession modified from "author" to "real estate holder" on a reference site. The author still appears to be overly concerned about this. At one point she remarks that she's researching the homicide so that before exiting the region, "she may grasp something about an the nation that her Twitter detractors would be unable to grasp, would not even perceive".

The Homicide Account

Then we reach to the actual killing – and the titular day spent by the deceased with the killer and his associates. The author possesses excellent raw material, and reconstructs step by step what happened when the victim Brandon came to see Brittney after meeting her on an app where she marketed explicit images. He was hoping for sex but seems amiably to have occupied the day in the company of her associates, wandering about getting his car mended and covering the cost of food and substances, before being shot by Brittney's boyfriend Micah – a individual with mental health challenges who has frequently been hospitalised for fits of anger.

Preoccupation and Open Ends

Catt develops an obsession by the account, and I was fascinated by the way that her twin drives towards ethical reporting and daring boundary-pushing wrestle in this part. However, I would have preferred her to explore more thoroughly her own obsessions here. The most interesting character is Brittney herself, who comes alive partly through Catt's identification with her – another bright, bullied girl derailing in a struggling, neglected community. Kraus notes that Catt converses with Brittney in detention, but she fails to enact these dialogues. This entire part feels oddly unfinished, to the point that her narrative ends almost mid-par