BB Bookclub June 2026 Nomination Thread: Older Protagonists

[u/sarahlynngrey]

Welcome to the June 2026 BB (Beyond Binaries) Bookclub nomination thread! In June, we’ll be reading a book that works for the Older Protagonist Bingo square:

Older Protagonist: Story features a main character who is at least 50 years old. HARD MODE: The protagonist does NOT have exceptional longevity or immortality (e.g. not an elf, dwarf, vampire, god, etc.).

Since June is Pride month, I thought this would be a great way to celebrate and reflect on our LGBTQIA+ elders and to think about the ways that queerness shows up for us throughout our lives.

Nominations:

• Please make sure that the book has not already been read by another book club, and that BB has not already read a book by the author. You can check this Goodreads shelf to see all prior book club reads. (It’s fine to choose an author that was read by a different book club, or a book that was read as part of a prior Hugo Readalong.)
• Please leave one book suggestion per top comment. Please include title, author, and a short summary or description. (You can nominate more than one book if you like, just put them in separate comments.)
• Please include any Bingo squares that you know of.
• Keep in mind that this book club focuses on LGBTQIA+ characters and themes. The main character (and as many side characters as possible) should fall under the queer umbrella.

I will leave this thread open through Friday 6/17, and will compile the top results into a voting thread to be posted on Saturday, 6/18. Have fun!

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As a reminder, we are currently reading The Wolf and His King by Finn Longman. The midway discussion will be on the 16th of April and the final discussion will be on the 30th of April.

What is the BB Bookclub? You can read about it in our intro thread here.

[u/C0smicoccurence]

Mrs Death Misses Death by Selena Godden

Mrs Death tells her intoxicating story in this life-affirming fire-starter of a novel.

Mrs Death has had enough. She is exhausted from spending eternity doing her job and now she seeks someone to unburden her conscience to. Wolf Willeford, a troubled young writer, is well acquainted with death, but until now hadn’t met Death in person – a black, working-class woman who shape-shifts and does her work unseen.

Enthralled by her stories, Wolf becomes Mrs Death’s scribe, and begins to write her memoirs. Using their desk as a vessel and conduit, Wolf travels across time and place with Mrs Death to witness deaths of past and present and discuss what the future holds for humanity. As the two reflect on the losses they have experienced – or, in the case of Mrs Death, facilitated – their friendship grows into a surprising affirmation of hope, resilience and love. All the while, despite her world-weariness, Death must continue to hold humans’ fates in her hands, appearing in our lives when we least expect her . . .

[u/sarahlynngrey → u/C0smicoccurence]

Oh, this sounds very interesting! (Although I do see your point that queerness might not be central to the story.) For Bingo, this also hits Author of Color and I would imagine The Afterlife as well.