The following version of this book was used to create the guide: Cunningham, Michael. Day. Penguin Random House LLC, 2023.

Michael Cunningham’s novel Day is set in Brooklyn, New York and spans three years, 2019 - 2021. The novel is written from the third person point of view and in the present tense. While Cunningham toys with conventional notions of time throughout, the following summary abides by a linear, streamlined mode of explanation.

On April 5, 2019, Isabel Byrne tries to make the best of her circumstances. She gets herself ready for work. She talks to her husband, Dan, and confides in her brother Robbie.

In spite of her attempts at normalcy, Isabel is unhappy. She once dreamed about living in Brooklyn with Dan and raising a family together. In recent years, her regard for her domestic circumstances has changed. However, she is thankful to have Robbie close.

After Robbie’s last relationship ended, he moved in with Isabel. They have recreated their family structure in the months since. Robbie has become an integral player in the Byrne family. He is close with Isabel and with Dan. His nephew Nathan and niece Violet rely upon his comforting and boisterous presence, too.

However, because Isabel and Dan want Nathan to have his own room, they have asked Robbie to find his own apartment. Their current setup is too claustrophobic and chaotic.

Robbie has been searching for a new place to live. His efforts have failed thus far. As a schoolteacher, Robbie has limited funds to work with. He also feels disillusioned by his job and heartbroken over his failed relationship. He wants to remake his life, but often feels immobilized. In order to escape his upset, he focuses on his fictional character, Wolfe.

Isabel and Robbie invented Wolfe when they were children. In the present, Robbie runs Wolfe’s Instagram page. He and Isabel use Wolfe as an escape mechanism.

Meanwhile, Dan is trying to remake himself as a musician. He hopes that doing so will reignite his children’s and wife’s belief in him. He compares himself to his brother Garth, convinced that he is doing better in life. Garth is the father of an infant named Odin. However, Odin’s mother Chess does not want Garth in their life. Garth and Chess struggle to navigate their complex parental dynamic.

A year later, the characters are consigned to their home spheres when the world goes on lockdown. The 2020 coronavirus outbreak has changed their senses of time, of reality, and of normalcy.

Isabel finds the pandemic and lockdown particularly difficult to tolerate. Her confined daily life makes her feel more desperate for escape than ever.

Meanwhile, Robbie is holed up in a cabin in Iceland. He ventured to Iceland for a getaway before the pandemic and has been stuck here ever since. Rather than frustrating him, Robbie’s circumstances grant him perspective and hope.

However, when Robbie contracts the coronavirus, he realizes that he may not survive. He writes Isabel several letters before he passes away.

In April of 2021, the characters' lives have undergone even more changes. Isabel and Dan have separated and Isabel has moved out of the city and to a country house. This new rural setting has afforded her perspective and freedom.

The family gathers at the country house to scatter Robbie’s ashes. They are all still grieving Robbie. However, Isabel is hopeful that this reunion and ceremony will grant them closure and renewal. She feels particularly hopeful that she is on the brink of a new life.