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The Four Spent the Day Together is populated with characters chasing after new beginnings, struggling to escape substance abuse or abusive marriages, only to see hope turn into conflict. Kraus often employs the phrase "clean slate", rendering it willfully cynical through constant reiteration. Phrases such as "He aimed to start over" and "They opted for a clean break" are scattered across the story. At the same time, she appears to be undertaking her own fresh start, because this presents as a novel form of writing – observational, genuinely novelistic. But then it turns out to be packed with the familiar conflicts and styles as earlier books.

From Unplanned Author to Iconic Work

Kraus was originally an artist who transitioned to writing almost accidentally with her 1997 cult classic I Love Dick, which was composed of missives to a distant beloved, transforming personal female narrative from humiliation into assassination. She kept producing books, but the following three engaging and challenging novels lacked the shock and immediacy that the letter form imparted to the voice of I Love Dick. It didn't help was her role 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 explore fresh narrative sources, turning outward to the experiences of others, at a period in which she asserts that current political era makes confessional writing unnecessary.

Several Eras, One Unescapable Past

The Four Spent the Day Together is divided into three sections, covering multiple eras – none able to break free from their histories. There is the narrative about characters Emma and Jasper, based on the author's parents, transitioning from the New York borough to rural Connecticut. Then there is the narrative of the author, in the persona of Catt Greene, reckoning with the belated success of I Love Dick, the ascent of a political figure, and her substance-dependent spouse a man named Paul. Finally the narrative of a homicide of one lost young man by another in a town mostly forsaken by liberal ideals only a short distance from Catt's rural residence in a remote part of Minnesota.

For this reader attracted to polished prose of the type the author herself often avoids, I was seduced by the novelistic voice of the initial segment.

As a reader who favors crafted language of the kind that Kraus herself often disregards, I was captivated by the novelistic voice of the opening segment. There is a fresh level of observation that accommodates small details, like the container that the protagonist as a child pries out of frozen water at the beginning of the narrative, aided by her adored dad. "I discovered a frozen plaything!" she says; "a great plaything", he replies, "the ambiguous meanings of language tumbling in their mouths like hard candy". She tells Emma's narrative with interest and closeness. "Emma experienced a dreamlike sensation – not hers, exactly."

Disappointment and Disjunction

I was fated to feel let down when I wished this fresh tone could last out the book. Kraus says here that she dislikes the satisfaction those who appreciate polished prose have taken from I Love Dick; she's dedicated to disjunction, to the unpolished style she has in common with her inspiration Kathy Acker, and the blankness and repetitiveness of her previous novels comes back in the second segment. Catt Greene is trying to renovate multiple decrepit residences in Albuquerque's worst neighbourhoods while moving between the Midwest and the West Coast, unable to aid Paul curb his addiction. She feels helpless as her spouse cycles through poorly supported positions as an addiction therapist in a society fueled by the anger and fear that underpins Trump's victory. Multiple pages are devoted about Catt's social media ostracism on a platform, her professional designation altered from "author" to "landlord" on the online encyclopedia. She still gives the impression to invest excessive emotion about this. In a moment she states that she's researching the homicide so that before departing the state, "she could potentially understand something about an the United States that her Twitter detractors would fail to comprehend, would not even see".

The Murder Narrative

Then we reach to the homicide in question – and the eponymous day spent by the deceased with the murderer and his friends. Kraus has compelling foundational content, and knows hour by hour what transpired when a man named Brandon came to meet Brittney after connecting via an application where she offered adult photos. He sought a sexual encounter but seems amiably to have occupied the day in the company of her associates, mooching around getting his car mended and funding treats and narcotics, before being murdered by her romantic interest a man named Micah – a individual with mental health challenges who has repeatedly received inpatient care for aggressive outbursts.

Obsession and Unfinished Business

Catt gets obsessed by the story, and I found myself captivated by the way that Kraus's dual urges towards accurate chronicling and reckless transgression tussle in this section. However, I would have preferred her to explore more thoroughly her individual preoccupations here. The most interesting character is Brittney, who gains dimension partially because of Catt's identification with her – a similarly gifted, tormented individual spiraling out of control in a difficult, overlooked locality. The author informs us that Catt converses with Brittney in detention, but she fails to enact these dialogues. This entire part feels oddly unfinished, to the point that Kraus's narration ends almost mid-par