Rating: 
Summary: Not her best, but enough good tales to make it worthwhile.
Review: A.S. Byatt's 1998 collection of fairy tales, The Djinn in the Nightingale's Eye, was one of the most delightful collections of the last decade. Her 1999 follow-up, Elementals: Stories of Fire and Ice, is more of a mixed bag, both qualitatively and thematically, but if the rough parts of this six-story collection fall below Byatt's normal standards, the gems shine as brightly as anything she has written.The collection begins, unfortunately, with Byatt's weakest (and longest) entry, "Crocodile Tears." Patricia Nimmo and her husband have a petty argument in a gallery, shortly after which he drops dead. She flees to a small bullfighting town in France to mourn (or, more accurately, to avoid mourning), where she encounters Nils Isaksen, a fellow mourner. Alas, Isaksen never comes across as a complete character, and as Patricia is learning to despise him for saving her time and again, we are learning to be bored by him. Only when he admits to a truly despicable act does he start to appear human and interesting. Seventy-five pages of Byatt prose is always going to be well-written, but her neglect of plot hamstrings the potential of this tale. "A Lamia in the Cévennes," yet another tale of someone escaping to France, also suffers from an unlikable character, although Bernard Lycett-Kean is clearly meant to be a boor. Lycett-Kean, a British painter, moves to France to get away from Thatcherite England, and soon becomes obsessed with his swimming pool's odor and color, eventually filling it with river water. In the process, a lamia gets trapped in the pool, and promises our hero great love and happiness if he'd but kiss her. A consummate painter, he insists upon keeping her as she is until he captures her snakelike beauty on canvas. If the ending falls flat from predictibility, Byatt's examination of the mind of an artist can't be faulted. Lycett-Keen's artistic quests make him "happy, in one of the ways human beings have found in which to be happy," and her examination of his obsessive mind make readers happy in yet another way. The story most written in the classic fairy-tale style, "Cold," tells of a woman born as an ice maiden, and her love for a man of the desert. For all the fairy-tale trappings, Byatt spins a wonderfully modern examination of the inadvertent harm men can do women, and the promises everyone makes to themselves of everlasting happiness. For all the tragedy the ironically-named Fiammarosa endures, this is, at its core, a happy and charming tale. "Baglady" is a surprising, and brilliant, change of pace. Here, Byatt presents a horror story in which a woman gets trapped in a mall. Although the messages may not be original, Byatt's short but effective look at narcissism and capitalism is wittily told, and it's nice to see a member of the literary elite (other than Joyce Carol Oates) embrace a genre that so many greats toiled in a century ago. "Jael," a overlong vignette in which an advertising executive ruminates on unexplained betrayal, is the weakest story in the collection. Byatt seems to have been attempting to capture something of Barbara Kingsolver in her writing style and theme here (she even swipes the not-truly-false memory concept from the latter's Animal Dreams), but she fails miserably to hit it. As a part of a novel, this might have some potential, but here, it's fifteen pages of filler. The final tale, "Christ in the House of Martha and Mary," enters Joanna Scott's territory of historical character studies, and does so wonderfully. This is a sweet tale of the two serving ladies who modeled for Velásquez's painting, particularly Dolores, the model for Martha, and her acceptance of the hand that life has dealt her. All of the themes Byatt has explored throughout the book -- food, art, growth -- converge in this near-perfect ending to Elementals. Gems like this tale and "Cold" make slogging through some of the weaker items worth the effort.
Rating: 
Summary: Elemental
Review: A.S. Byatt's lush prose and dreamy storyline were among the best parts of her hit novel "Possession." Unfortunately, her short stories don't quite live up to that standard. They are woven together with words and a delicate sense for what is beautiful, but seem as cold as the ice princess's skin. "Crocodile Tears," the strongest story in the collection, is a haunting, ambiguous little tale about a woman fleeing from where her husband died. So she goes to France and immerses herself in art, in beauty, and encounters a stranger with his own story to tell. Less compelling is "A Lamia in the Cevennes" (a painter encounters a magical snake), "Cold" (an ice princess has relationship problems with her hot-blooded desert husband), "Bag Lady" (a weird story about being at the mall), "Jael" (artists and the Biblical story), and "Christ in the House of Martha and Mary" (a cute little story about a cook). Generally short stories are written that way because they are too brief or insubstantial to stand as novels. "Elementals" is sunk in a velvety carpet of artistry, beauty and lush language. But it lacks a soul. Few of the characters, except for the lead of "Crocodile Tears," have any depth or development. The rest seem like paper dolls. Byatt's writing is intoxicating; she takes the best of both prose and poetry (she can write both) and mixes them together. And in "Elementals," she stretches her wings into different kinds of stories -- parables, stream-of-consciousness, human drama and fairy tales. Unfortunately, the handling of these stories is clumsy, especially in the tritely plotted "Cold" and instantly forgettable "A Lamia in the Cevennes." Though "Elementals" is described as "stories of fire and ice," ice dominates this cool, pretty little collection of stories. In the end, "Elementals" is elegantly-written but hollow.
Rating:
Summary: Elemental
Review: A.S. Byatt's lush prose and dreamy storyline were among the best parts of her hit novel "Possession." Unfortunately, her short stories don't quite live up to that standard. They are woven together with words and a delicate sense for what is beautiful, but seem as cold as the ice princess's skin. "Crocodile Tears," the strongest story in the collection, is a haunting, ambiguous little tale about a woman fleeing from where her husband died. So she goes to France and immerses herself in art, in beauty, and encounters a stranger with his own story to tell. Less compelling is "A Lamia in the Cevennes" (a painter encounters a magical snake), "Cold" (an ice princess has relationship problems with her hot-blooded desert husband), "Bag Lady" (a weird story about being at the mall), "Jael" (artists and the Biblical story), and "Christ in the House of Martha and Mary" (a cute little story about a cook). Generally short stories are written that way because they are too brief or insubstantial to stand as novels. "Elementals" is sunk in a velvety carpet of artistry, beauty and lush language. But it lacks a soul. Few of the characters, except for the lead of "Crocodile Tears," have any depth or development. The rest seem like paper dolls. Byatt's writing is intoxicating; she takes the best of both prose and poetry (she can write both) and mixes them together. And in "Elementals," she stretches her wings into different kinds of stories -- parables, stream-of-consciousness, human drama and fairy tales. Unfortunately, the handling of these stories is clumsy, especially in the tritely plotted "Cold" and instantly forgettable "A Lamia in the Cevennes." Though "Elementals" is described as "stories of fire and ice," ice dominates this cool, pretty little collection of stories. In the end, "Elementals" is elegantly-written but hollow.
Rating:
Summary: Sumptuous Feast
Review: As a general rule, I am not well-versed in or even greatly care for, short-fiction. But when I came across the beautiful picture on the cover of this volume, I read the back of the jacket, explaining it's contents. Isn't it funny when just the picture on the cover can entice you into reading something you otherwise normally would not? At any rate, this book is a collection of Byatt's short stories of "fire and ice," that is, extremes. Other reviews summarize the individual stories, so I will merely state that this appears to be a collection of how people at one extreme are seduced into the lives of people at the opposite end of the spectrum. The prose is lyrical, yet purposeful, and Byatt's rich narratives aptly set the scene for easy imaginings and identification with both the characters and the settings. Perhaps what's most intriguing is that while reading about the extremes of two characters, you will find yourself placed in the middle of the road, able to identify with both. Provocative and compelling. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Once Again, Byatt Leaves Me Cold
Review: At the behest of friends who swear by her books, I periodically return to A.S. Byatt to try and get a glimpse of what it is they find so enchanting in her work. After the weighty Babel Tower and Possession, this small volume of six stories seemed to offer a more painless approach. Once again, however, I have to confess that her dense and elaborate style, crammed full of classical and biblical references comes off the page as rather over-thought and contrived to me. The first story, about a woman who literally runs away from her husband's death left me utterly unmoved and cold. Another story about a reclusive painter who encounters a mythical creature in his swimming pool also left me with a "so-what" emptiness. Yes, Byatt can create these dense sentences dripping with description, but it's all underpinned by a sense of ennui that I find tiresome. The longest and most conventional of the stories is a fairy tale about a princess with ice maiden blood falls in love with a desert prince, and sacrifices her health to be with him. In that context, Byatt's elaborate prose works a bit better and isn't so off-putting. However, my favorite tale is of the wife of an English businessman who gets lost in a giant Asian shopping mall. It's a funny and grotesque absurdist piece, and the only one where Byatt's style doesn't take precedence over the storytelling. In any event, this little volume will likely appeal to Byatt's fans and do little to endear her to those-like me-who don't care for her style.
Rating:
Summary: No Better Than Average
Review: I liked Byatt's "Possession" and her volume of short stories entiteled "Sugar and Other Stories," so I was happily anticipating reading "Elementals." It was a big disappointment. The stories in this volume can't begin to compare with the stories in "Sugar." Although labeled "Stories of Fire and Ice," I saw mostly ice in this volume. There was little, if any fire. Characterization seems to be a weak point of Byatt's. Even in "Possession," which I thought was beautiful, I failed to develop a "connection" with any of the characters. They just don't evoke an emotional response and the characters in these stories are even weaker than most. The first and longest story, "Crocodile Tears," concerned a woman who fled the scene of her husband's death, hoping to flee her past as well. While I found the premise a good one, Byatt soon fell into stereotypes and cliches and far too much dreaded coincidence. The second story, "A Lamia in the Cevennes," was kind of interesting in a perverse sort of way. Unlike some of the other reviewers, I did not care for the fairy tale like story, "Cold." The characters just didn't move me at all and I found the ending too easy and "pat." I thought "Baglady" could have been a masterpiece had Byatt only developed it more. As it is, it feels truncated and wanting. "Jael" seems to be a story that was overlooked by many of the other reviewers, but honestly, it was probably my favorite. In it, we get a much more complete view of the main character as a real person rather than a cardboard cutout. "Christ in the House of Mary and Martha" was also quite good but it, too, suffered from a trite and rather "pat" ending. I didn't find much that was redeeming in these stories. All of them failed to find any emotional resonance in me and I didn't even think the writing was particularly sensuous or beautiful. Byatt does seem to be deliberately sacrificing both character and plot to artifice, however. Artifice can impress the immature reader but in the end, I just don't think it has any staying power. I feel sure hard core Byatt fans will love this book but I know I'm going to be much more careful about buying Byatt's works from now on.
Rating:
Summary: No Better Than Average
Review: I liked Byatt's "Possession" and her volume of short stories entiteled "Sugar and Other Stories," so I was happily anticipating reading "Elementals." It was a big disappointment. The stories in this volume can't begin to compare with the stories in "Sugar." Although labeled "Stories of Fire and Ice," I saw mostly ice in this volume. There was little, if any fire. Characterization seems to be a weak point of Byatt's. Even in "Possession," which I thought was beautiful, I failed to develop a "connection" with any of the characters. They just don't evoke an emotional response and the characters in these stories are even weaker than most. The first and longest story, "Crocodile Tears," concerned a woman who fled the scene of her husband's death, hoping to flee her past as well. While I found the premise a good one, Byatt soon fell into stereotypes and cliches and far too much dreaded coincidence. The second story, "A Lamia in the Cevennes," was kind of interesting in a perverse sort of way. Unlike some of the other reviewers, I did not care for the fairy tale like story, "Cold." The characters just didn't move me at all and I found the ending too easy and "pat." I thought "Baglady" could have been a masterpiece had Byatt only developed it more. As it is, it feels truncated and wanting. "Jael" seems to be a story that was overlooked by many of the other reviewers, but honestly, it was probably my favorite. In it, we get a much more complete view of the main character as a real person rather than a cardboard cutout. "Christ in the House of Mary and Martha" was also quite good but it, too, suffered from a trite and rather "pat" ending. I didn't find much that was redeeming in these stories. All of them failed to find any emotional resonance in me and I didn't even think the writing was particularly sensuous or beautiful. Byatt does seem to be deliberately sacrificing both character and plot to artifice, however. Artifice can impress the immature reader but in the end, I just don't think it has any staying power. I feel sure hard core Byatt fans will love this book but I know I'm going to be much more careful about buying Byatt's works from now on.
Rating: 
Summary: Another amazing short story collection by A.S. Byatt!
Review: I love A.S. Byatt's short-story collections. Elementals is another staggering offering from this talented writer. These adult fairy tales enthralled me from beginning to end. I love Byatt's use of magical realism. She takes you into a unique and literary reading experience. I also love the stories settings -- the ones set in France are especially great. My favorite stories are "Crocodile Tears," "A Lamia in the Cevennes," "Bag Lady," and "Jael." I liked all of the stories, but these were the most unforgettable ones for me. I look forward to reading more stuff by A.S. Byatt. She is truly one of the best writers of the moment.
Rating:
Summary: Skillfully crafted, but curiously cold
Review: Like Byatt's previous collections, this book is a well-written quick read with gorgeous visual imagery. Its focus is how characters negotiate extremes--of emotion, of circumstance, of temperature and more. But for a book subtitled "Stories of Fire and Ice" there is very little passion; and I felt little emotional engagement. The writing is exquisite, but the emotional life of the characters is not fully realized.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful!
Review: This collection of short stories is probably the best anthology I have read this year. Byatt's writing is sheer poetry and is so lush and beautiful. Byatt can really weave words together and create a tapestry of beauty. I love that these are modern fairy tales and deal with so many different topics.
But beauty aside, the main problem of this anthology was that it did run hot and cold but not in a good way. Some stories I found boring and uninteresting. "Crocodile Tears" is a fine example of a story that couldn't capture my fancy. I was also confused by "Jael" and am still trying to figure out the meaning behind it.
But my favorite story was "Lamia In The Cevennes." I loved the meaning behind this story and it made me smile.
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