Okay I am looking for an unconventional protagonists, especially heroines, and I am trying to be open. I used to dislike this kind of character because I thought it was unrealistic, and they tended to be selfish and short sighted (at least the ones I would read), but two stories changed my mind.
One was a heroine who was unconventional for more logical reasons (the system had already fallen apart and she was doing what she had to-read not acting like a lady-to survive), and did not shirk her responsibilities, and had a streak of dutifulness. Sort of like a free spirit, but not selfish, and hardworking. And it was fairly realistic and balanced in my opinion, how she treated others was not rude, and how they responded to her eccentricity. And the ones who did follow the rules were not written as all bad or ignorant. The rules she broke were mostly ones that did not make sense. And the story is written fairly in that a number of things she tried to break ended up having good reasons, though it is also written like she had some good points.
The other story was actually a man who was also free spirited, but he kept it within certain bounds so that, even though he experimented and played with the rules, he was never disrespectful of others (or at least mostly kept it like that), and also tried to do the right thing.
Any recs?
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Edit: Oh wow! Thanks for all the recs, I am so excited to try these!
by whatwhatiswhatwhat
11 Comments
I who have known no men by Jacqueline Harpman. Main character rebels a little bit mostly works within her community.
The Blue Ant series by William Gibson has an interesting character who has a “allergy” to bad branding/design. She helps an eccentric billionaire who wants to get into clothing design.
It’s so much more than that, but that’s the start of the story.
William Gibson writes super slick, cool, cyberpunk. Check it out.
Differently Morphus and Existentially Challenged by Yahtzee Croshaw. Allison is an unconventional and very interesting heroine.
*The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi* by S.A. Chakraborty. The protagonist is a pirate captain, so she definitely breaks a lot of rules, but she has a strong sense of justice, takes her responsibilities as a ship captain very seriously, fiercely protects her crew and her familiy and owns up to her mistakes and tries to do better.
Maybe try Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg.
The Inhabited Woman by Gioconda Belli
Given the historical context, the female protagonist in [The Cape Doctor by E.J. Levy](https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/50998140) was very unconventional.
I don’t know if this fits exactly, but I found Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine was one of the first books I read where I bought into the protagonist’s “quirks” because they felt so genuine. I’m not sure if that’s a universal take, though!
There’s the Miriam Black series by Chuck Wendig. It’s not for everyone, but I’m loving it so far (I’m on book three), and Miriam’s definitely a pretty unconventional heroine.
Maybe The lost bookshop by Evie Woods
Deadwood mysteries violet is super unconventional,