Task: Sentiment Analysis
Input (English): Similar stories crush this collection . Having enjoyed Russo's Pulitzer Prize winning novel "Empire Falls," I was eager to give something else of his a try. Maybe I should have selected one of his earlier novels instead because "The Whore's Child," interesting title aside, becomes tired and repetitive very quickly. The themes are the same in each story: aging male professor with an itchy prostate faces a mid-life situation, usually involving his younger second wife. That may sound too specific to relate to all of the stories in this collection, but you would be disappointed to realize that it is very accurate. The lone exception, and the novel's best story, is the titular work about a nun who is, in point of fact, a whore's child -- and the discrepancy between the generations makes for a poignant story. And yet, even that one includes a male professor character who is teaching the nun in his creative writing class, so similarities remain. Despite that, the story is great. The rest ... well, if Russo had done away with the other six achingly similar stories and expanded them into a single novella the book would have been much better. Russo is certainly capable of spinning a great yarn, and the themes are fine if a little familiar (Russo seems to be an author that excells in that domain). I just think you would do better to stick with the format best suited to his talents: his novels. I know that I will from now on
Output (English): NEG