When it comes to the publishing industry, it might seem like most authors are preoccupied with writing coming-of-age tales, twenty-something dramas, or characters experiencing midlife crises. There’s nothing wrong with those stories but we’re missing out on a large swathe of the population. Thankfully the tide has been turning in recent years with increasing numbers of books featuring what I like to call seasoned protagonists. This is a relief because while we do hear from younger readers who want to read about fictional characters who are their parents’—or grandparents’—ages, we have REALLY heard from readers in their fifties, sixties, seventies, and beyond who would like to see themselves represented in the pages of a good book.
Our phrase “seasoned protagonists” is by no means an official designation, but know that today we’ve gathered books of all genres that feature protagonists aged sixty and up.
Our seasoned protagonist book list features titles from a variety of genres ranging from historical fiction to fantasy to mystery. While characters in their 60s are most represented here, you’ll also see characters in their 70s, 80s, and 90s. There were so many more titles we could have included, and that’s where you come in: I hope you’ll add your favorites (please include the character’s age, if you know it!) in the comments along with your book recommendations featuring older characters in literature.
20 novels featuring seasoned protagonists
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Hannah Coulter
No matter how many times I re-read this contemplative and wistful novel, I'm always ready to turn around and discuss it with a friend. Hannah's second husband Nathan Coulter (her first died in the war) was reticent to talk about his experience in the Battle of Okinawa. "Ignorant boys, killing each other," is all he would say. In this atmospheric novel, 80-year-old Hannah looks back on her life and reflects on what she has lost, and those she has loved. Her recollections paint a vivid portrait of a complicated, loving family. I adore Berry’s work: he writes gorgeous, thoughtful, piercing novels, and this is one of his finest. More info →
The Buried Giant
Ishiguro tries his hand at fantasy, following an elderly couple in post-Arthurian Britain after the wars between the Saxons and the Britons have ended. Axl and Beatrice set out to visit their son whom they haven’t seen in many years. And, it must be noted, who they barely remember courtesy of a mist that’s caused amnesia across the land. As they journey, they’re joined by a Saxon warrior, his orphan charge, and a knight, and their memories slowly start to return. A moving meditation on the way war impacts memory. More info →
State of Wonder
This is one of my favorite Patchett novels. In this tense adventure story, Dr. Marina Singh, a staid Minnesota researcher, travels into the heart of the Amazon to find out how her colleague died. She’s also tasked with checking in on Dr. Annick Swenson, who is pregnant at the age of 73 and overseeing their pharmaceutical company's top secret research project in the jungle. Patchett combines big business, fertility, conspiracy, and anacondas to fascinating ends. More info →
An Unnecessary Woman
A heart-wrenching novel for bibliophiles. Aaliya Sohbi is a 72-year-old introverted child-free divorcée living alone in her Beirut apartment with books as her closest companions. Her family doesn’t know what to do with her, nor do her neighbors. Aaliya’s favorite pastime is translating books into Arabic, which she never shows to anyone. Filled with musings on literature, art, aging, and Aaliya’s past, Alameddine celebrates the way books show us who we are and the beauty found in a small life. More info →
An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good
An entertainingly dark short story collection, translated from the Swedish by Marlaine Delargy, following 88-year-old Maud whose solution to most of life’s problems is murder. She’s gotten away with it so far because, well, who would ever suspect an elderly lady of such crimes? Without friends or family and no rent thanks to a fortunate clause in her lease, Maud is free to travel and do basically whatever she wants. That is, until cops arrive to investigate a murder in her apartment building. Content warnings apply. More info →
The Red Address Book
An address book provides a window to the past in this touching novel. Doris is a 96-year-old woman still living on her own in her Stockholm apartment. Aside from her caregivers, her primary source of socialization is her weekly Skype calls with her grandniece Jenny. With the help of the address book where she’s faithfully documented memories of her loved ones over the years, Doris reminisces about her time working as a maid in Sweden, modeling in Paris, and moving to the US before WWII. Translated from the Swedish by Alice Menzies. More info →
The Weight of Ink
In this historical fiction, 64-year-old historian Helen Watt is asked to look at seventeenth-century letters signed by an unknown rabbi, which were found in the stairwell of an old house in London. These letters have great historical significance and, with the help of American graduate student Aaron Levy, she’s quickly drawn into the mystery of who Aleph was. The letters drive the story forward as academics debate their provenance in the present, while the past storyline introduces us to Ester Velasquez in the 1660s while she works as a scribe for a blind rabbi and a plague looms in the horizon. The characters are well-drawn and demand you feel empathy for them. A great choice for readers who enjoyed A.S. Byatt’s Possession. More info →
Chances Are…
In this short novel, three sixty-six-year-old college friends come back together for the first time in years, reunited in Martha's Vineyard, where they spent a life-changing Memorial Day weekend together nearly forty years before. That was the weekend that one of their friends—a friend they were all at least a little bit in love with—disappeared, and they've been thinking about her ever since. Surprisingly suspenseful but full of tenderness, too. Russo crafts a story of male friendship, family tragedy, and how the past is never really past. More info →
Deacon King Kong
In the jolting opening of this historical novel set in 1969, a beloved 71-year-old drunk deacon named Sportcoat wanders into the courtyard of his south Brooklyn housing project and shoots the drug dealer he'd once treated like a son point-blank, in front of everyone. McBride then zooms out to show the reader how this violent act came to take place, exploring the lives of the shooter and the victim, the victim's bumbling friends, the residents who witnessed it, the neighbors who heard about it, the cops assigned to investigate, the members of the church where Sportcoat was a deacon, and the neighborhood's mobsters (and their families). The story itself is compelling, but it's McBride's warmth and humor that really captures readers as he gently teases out these characters and their unlikely connections. The audiobook, narrated by Dominic Hoffman, was impossible to put down. More info →
The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle
In this contemporary novel, a 64-year-old closeted gay postman goes on a journey of acceptance. Albert Entwistle is content with his life—he has his elderly cat Gracie and his work as a postman—until he receives a letter informing him he’ll be retiring at 65. Albert can’t make sense of how he’ll fill his days without work and this spurs him to finally look beyond himself and seek connection with his community. And perhaps reconnect with his secret first love along the way. More info →
Monogamy
This wistful and often sad story about marriage, happiness, and family centers around the thirty-year marriage between Graham and Annie. Graham owns a bookstore, and much of the couples' life revolves around bookstore events (they meet at an author event!). Early in the book—this is not a spoiler—Graham suddenly dies. During the following year, a grieving Annie reflects on their life together, in the process tripping over new information about him and their marriage, causing her to question the very foundations of their relationship. More info →
Death Comes to Marlow
78-year-old Judith Potts is a crossword puzzle author and a member of the Marlow Murder Club. She and her friends Suzie and Becks are looking forward to attending a lavish wedding at the Marlow mansion when the groom is found crushed to death in his locked study. The police rule it as an accident but Judith is convinced Sir Peter was murdered. The women’s friendship made this one enjoyable mystery. While this is the second book in the series, it stands on its own just fine. (This was Donna’s addition to the 2023 Summer Reading Guide.) More info →
Barbara Isn’t Dying
In this tragicomic tale, Herr Schmidt wakes one morning to discover nobody has made the coffee yet—and his immediate thought is that his wife must have died in the night, because what other explanation could there be? Barbara is in fact alive, but unwell. As the story progresses, we see this curmudgeonly 70-something husband learn to do things he's never considered doing for himself, let alone someone else, in all his long decades of married life: purchase ground coffee, cook a potato, run the vacuum. And that's just the beginning of the adaptations this couple will have to make to their relationship as they enter a challenging new stage. Bronsky covers a lot of emotional ground in just 182 pages; I recommend Fredrik Backman fans take a look. Translated from the German by Tim Mohr. More info →
Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers
This was a fun romp! This adorable tea shop murder mystery has serious Only Murders in the Building vibes and boasts a pleasantly large cast of (mostly) likable characters. When the titular 60-year-old widow awakes one morning to find a dead body clutching a flash drive on the floor of her tea shop, she calls in the authorities. (She doesn't want to, but her son convinces her she has to). But, unimpressed by their approach to the case and unconvinced they can get to the truth of what happened, she takes matters into her own hands, with delightful and chaotic results and a feel-good ending I didn't expect. More info →
Killers of a Certain Age
No one would ever suspect 60-somethings Billie, Mary Alice, Helen, and Natalie are professional assassins. And that’s the point! They’re great at their job for the Museum, a top-secret network of elite assassins. But in this rollicking thriller, it’s killed or be killed as the women realize their impending retirement might be more permanent than they want. It looks like their employer is trying to take them out with their final job. Fun and funny, I had a hard time putting this one down. More info →
Sipsworth
Eighty-three-year-old Helen Cartwright moves back to her English village hometown after sixty years in Australia. Her husband and adult son have both died and she doesn’t feel the need to seek out new friends. The quiet solitude is enough as she lives out the remainder of her life. When she finds and rescues an abandoned pet mouse whom she names Sipsworth, she has no idea just how much her life is about to change. A moving exploration of grief, loneliness, community, and second chances. More info →
Fellowship Point
This sprawling saga and 2022 MMD Summer Reading Guide selection featuring two octogenarian protagonists reads like a 19th century novel. Agnes Lee and Polly Wister have been friends their whole lives, growing up alongside each other in Philadelphia Quaker families and summering together in Maine. Agnes is beloved by the world as a bestselling children’s author, but not a living soul—including Polly—knows she also pens the popular and critically praised Franklin Square series. Polly knows Agnes sees her as a pushover, especially when it comes to her family, but Polly never lets on that she's wiser than her friend gives her credit for. When an enterprising (and nosy) young editor begins pestering Agnes to write a memoir, she sets in motion a chain of events that tests the women’s lifelong friendship, and threatens to expose the long-buried secrets each has so carefully kept from the other. More info →
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead
A quirky noir/murder mystery with a sprinkling of fairytale vibes set in the rural mountains of Poland. Janina is a woman in her 60s who prefers animals to humans and spends her days translating poetry, studying astrology, and looking after the summer homes belonging to rich people. Then a neighbor dies unexpectedly. And another one. And another one. Soon Janina begins investigating herself, certain mistreated animals are enacting their revenge. (She wouldn’t blame them if they were.) Now if she could just get the police to listen to her. This novel from the Nobel-winning Tokarczuk was shortlisted for the Booker; the U.S. edition was translated from the Polish by Antonia Lloyd-Jones. More info →
Mrs. Plansky’s Revenge
Loretta Plansky, a recently widowed 70-something, is living in a Florida retirement community, staying busy, and focused on the neighbors’ gardens and her tennis game. Accustomed to getting phone calls from family members asking for money, she’s not surprised when her grandson Will calls and asks for $10,000 to get out of a jam. Except the caller isn’t actually Will and by morning, they’ve absconded with Loretta’s life savings. When law enforcement claims they’ll have no luck finding the scammers, Loretta takes things into her own hands. Her journey takes her to Romania and leads to so much more. I so enjoyed Mrs Plansky's sense of humor, as well as the frequent jokes about American grammar. More info →
How to Read a Book
Wood returns with another poignant Maine novel centering three lonely people, two of whom are in their 60s, who are connected by a terrible tragedy. Violet was just nineteen when, drunk and high, she caused the death of a beloved local teacher and was sentenced to twenty-eight months in prison. Harriet runs the book group at the women’s prison, where the inmates spend one precious hour a month finding comfort in tearing apart the classics. And Frank is the victim’s widower, who fills his time by volunteering his handyman services at the local bookstore. This 2024 Summer Reading Guide selection is a deeply moving tale of redemption, second chances, and the power of books.
More info →What books with seasoned protagonists do you recommend? Please share in the comments.
P.S. 20 books featuring seasoned female protagonists and 25 family sagas that will sweep you away.
70 comments
What a great selection! I would add the Marlow Murder Mysteries by Robert Thorogood. A 70-something woman and her friends “assist” the police when there is a suspicious death in the tiny town of Marlow in the UK.
LOVE this series! So much fun.
I’m a fan of the Thursday Murder Club series. And Simon Brett’s Mrs. Pargeter series is worth a read, along with his Fethering mysteries.
I’ve loved so many of the ones you listed in this post. I would add a few (this is one of my favorite genres): Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry, Gilead by Marilynne Robinson, Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson, The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper by Phaedra Patrick, The Last List of Mabel Beaumont by Laura Pearson, The Thursday Murder Club series by Richard Osman, Varino Palladino’s Jersey Italian Love Story by Terri-Lynne DeFino, and This is Happiness by Niall Williams (do it on Audible!)–to name a few. Hah!
I loved both “Britt-Marie Was Here” and “A Man Called Ove” by Fredrik Backman. He writes with such humanity and insight.
Me too. I wish they would make Britt-Marie Was Here into a series or movie.
My absolute favorite author!
Still Life with Bread Crumbs by Anna Quindlen is a great love story about a 60 year old artist in upstate New York.
How To Age Disgracefully by Clare Pooley!!!
Thank you for giving us such a great list! As I am of a “seasoned” age now I love including books like this on my reading list. On your list I have only read the Ellen Tursten and Ann Patchet books. In the book clubs I am in we have been reading The Thursday Murder club books and the Marlow Mysteries. I look forward to adding these to my TBR list. Just an aside,it was your blog that brought me to Louise Penny years ago who became one of my all time favorite authors along with Ann Cleeves. I will always be grateful for that!
This is a category I love so much! Olive Kitteridge, Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk, Meet Me at the Museum, Our Souls at Night, How the Penguins Saved Veronica, Etta and Otto and Russell and James, The Weekend, The Swimmers.
Great recommendations and Strout has a new Lucy Barton coming out this fall!
Yes I have my library hold for that one!
I was hoping someone would mention Olive. Thank you!
I am a longtime reader of your blog posts and listener to your podcast.
Being a woman of a certain age, I too have become disenchanted with much that I see published. Sometimes I just need a protagonist with a bit of wear. Several of the choices on this list have been fun companions.
Here are a couple that should be added to your list.
The Excitements C J Wray
Holmes, Marple & Watson by James Patterson
The Spy Coast by Tess Garritsen
The Excitements is wonderful!
I loved Tova and her curmudgeonly friend Marcellus in Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt.
One of the BEST! My grandson encouraged me to read Remarkably Bright Creatures and am so glad I did!
Same!
My Favorite!
I recently read The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise, and The Door-to-Door Bookstore. They both feature a relationship between an ‘extremely capable’ elderly person and a young person who comes into their life, and what they learn from each other. This kind of book is ALways for me!!
I loved Door-to-Door Bookstore on audio. SO good.
I really enjoyed The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett by Annie Lyons (although it did feel very similar to A Man Called Ove), and The 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared, by Jonas Jonasson. Both had equal parts humor and gravity.
This is my resounding endorsement for Fellowship Point! Some of the loveliest, most resonant, no-word-wasted prose I have ever read.
So many good books on this list. I also recommend The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry.
There are so many but here are a few of my favorites: Banyan Moon by Thao Thai, The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams, Parnassian on Wheels by Christopher Morley, One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot by Marianne Cronin, and Love and Saffron by Kim Fay.
Parnassus on Wheels – loved it!
To my fellow Janice, thanks for suggesting How the Penguins Saved Veronica by Hazel Prior. I adored this series. By all means try Call of the Penguins the follow up book. I’ve previously mentioned in the comment sections of this blog the hilarious Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice to Murderers. Happy Reading!
Hi Janice, I saw on Instagram that another one in the series is coming in November – Gone with the Penguins.
My TBR just grew significantly! Great books here. I would add Celine by Peter Heller which I believe he based on his own mother..
Completely agree with Celine!
All the Lonely People by Mike Gail
We just read The Reading List for book club. Very enjoyable. And finally finally got Remarkably Bright Creatures from my library holds list. Devoured it, and loved Tova and the elderly octopus!
I was going to recommend Remarkably Bright Creatures as well! Such a good book.
I loved that book, and it was audio. The narrators were excellent!
I enjoyed several that were mentioned and would add: Iona Iverson’s Rules For Commuting by Clare Pooley and Sylvia’s Second Act by Hillary Yablon, and The Lost ticket by Freya Sampson . These are all light-hearted happy eventually stories. Also Mrs Plansky’s Revenge by Spencer Quinn
I enjoyed Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame by Olivia Ford. Fans of The Great British Baking Show will especially enjoy this book.
I really enjoyed The Getaway Girls by Dee MacDonald – it’s a fun, lighthearted story about 3 women in their 60s who take an RV trip from England to Italy. The main character, Connie, is looking to connect with some distant relations, and the other two ladies are friendly acquaintances who end up coming along for their own reasons, but definitely add to the adventure. It’s delightfully funny and sweet!
That sounds so good
The Thursday Murder Club series by Richard Osman. Such a fun group of “seasoned” characters in those books!
Great books with “seasoned” protagonists: Remarkably Bright Creatures, Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand, Pork Pie Pandemonium (and the rest of the Albert Smith’s Culinary Capers series), Elizabeth Is Missing, Britt-Marie Was Here, My Last Name, A Gentleman in Moscow, and The Reading List
Great list! I would add The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery, The 100 Years of Lenni and Margot by Marianne Cronin, and the many Olive Kitteridge and Lucy Barton books by Elizabeth Strout, as others mentioned.
Great list! I’m in my 40s but quite enjoy the books with seasoned protagonists. I just finished How to Read A Book by Monica Wood and LOVED it. What a unique story. The different perspectives were wonderful.
I loved Wood’s most recent, too. Unique and touching.
I loved the audio version of The Marlow Murder Club and The Thursday Murder Club books. Also great on audio was Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice to Murderers. The narrators of all these books did a wonderful job.
I recently read Honey by Victor Lodato and really appreciated reading about an older protagonist. Love this list and will use it to add to my TBR!
I love, love, LOVED “Killers of a Certain Age!” I would love to see a movie version — so many great parts for “older” actresses! And I second all the nominations for the Thursday Murder Club books by Richard Osman. So much fun!
Of course, I have a book in translation…Elena Knows by Claudia Pineiro. (It was longlisted for the International Booker Prize). I read this book first week in January and knew that I had read my best book of the year and 8 months later…still true. This seasoned protagonist has Parkinson’s Disease. This book is not one of those huggable curmudgeon books, her description of Elena’s life was visceral, and I will never forget it. Pineiro is a well-known mystery writer in Chile. Having read several of her books, it is perhaps not the typical mystery set up that we are used to in the US or UK. But highly recommend!
Meet Me at the Museum!!!
LOVE this protagonist.
Also… 84 Charing Cross Road.
My 2 faves left off this list so I had to be a first-time commenter!
I love books by Rosamund Pilcher. Winter Solstice and The Shellseekers are two of my favorites. Thank you for your list! I love reading books about characters that I can relate to.
I’m surprised not to see “The Change” by Kirsten Miller, this was a favorite for me, loved the seasoned characters.
Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson is one of my favorites!
Thanks for mentioning this title. One of my favorites too. This is a great thread.
The Last List of Mabel Beaumont by Laura Pearson.
A elderly woman reexamines her life after her husband dies
Meet Me at the Museum is one of my most FAVORITE books! Epistolary style, a lovely romance between older people. You and most of the commenters here mentioned just about every book I could think of except the Auntie Poldi series (she’s 60 yrs old) by Mario Giordano, the Henrik Groen diaries (83 1/4 years old), and the Her Majesty the Queen Investigates series (it’s the Queen!).
Remarkably Bright Creatures: A Novel
Book by Shelby Van Pelt
This book is not only a favorite with a seasonal protagonist but I would go as far as putting it in my top 25 of all time. I am a voracious reader and can honestly say this book had me laughing, crying and feeling every single page. Gorgeous writing. Such a beautiful story in so many ways. I don’t want any spoilers but for those who have not read it I highly recommend it. It is full of beautiful quotes and so much to think about. I read it and listened to it on audio. I loved both.
Any book by Rosamunde Pilcher! Her seasoned protagonists are wise and deeply layered.
I just started reading Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont by Elizabeth Taylor. I am reading along with the Close Reads podcast. I am only on Chapter 3 but I am finding the senior residents of The Claremont very enjoyable. This short novel was on the short list for the Booker Prize in 1971.
I recently came across a newish series by Cindy Dees about a 50+ woman forced to retire from the CIA due to her age. She is drawn back into her former skills as a sniper when someone threatens her family. This is a thriller with the twist of family dynamics as she tries to reconnect with her children who did not know why she was not around during their childhood. The first book is “Second Shot” followed by her latest release “Double Tap”. The author is a former US Air Force pilot and spy. I’m looking forward to the next installment.
The Forgotten Life of Eva Gordon by Linda MacKillop has been compared to Olive Kitteridge. It is both heartwarming and heartbreaking.
All the ‘Miss Marple’ books by Agatha Christie!
My pick is “The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen 83 1/4 Years Old”. It is funny and mostly so, so true. This is the 1st of 3 books. I think everyone would enjoy this, no matter what age.
Great list!
It’s interesting to me that the vast majority of these seasoned protagonists are women. Is that just a quirk of this list or is it that there are relatively few books with older men as the lead character? And if that’s the case, then I wonder why — because there is more of an audience for older women characters or something else?
So many questions!
That’s a good point and so true. I wonder why, too. Is it because it’s mostly women reading them? Or mostly women reading this newsletter, who read about women? Maybe the books about older men are the thrillers or legal series or cowboy series or game warden types….
The Thursday murder Club series has been mentioned, but it’s a must!! I just read How to Age Disgracefully by Clare Pooley & it was a delight!!
The Last Days of Ptolemy Gray by Walter Mosely and Narrowboat Summer by Anne Youngson (author of Meet Me at the Museum) are both wonderful.
I read through all the comments not wanting to be redundant. I’m sad that no one has mentioned Elizabeth Berg at all! She’s a delightful writer and has quite a few titles with “seasoned” protagonists. My most favorite is “The Story of Arthur Truluv” and “Night of Miracles”, which is Truluv part 2. There is a third, but I haven’t read it yet. Arthur Moses (90+ widower) is one of the loveliest characters I’ve ever read.
Thanks for the Elizabeth Berg recommendation! I am really enjoying “The Story of Arthur Truluv” and looking forward to “Night of Miracles.”
See if you can find the Mrs. Pollifax novels, by Dorothy Gilman. Mrs. Pollifax, past the age of retirement and bored with her garden club life, applies to work at the CIA. and mayhem ensues for 14 books. I return to these again and again.
I recently read The Night in Question by Susan Fletcher and loved it so much! A good mystery and a 87-year old reflecting on her life through her relationships. It was beautiful!
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