I usually prefer classical books, and don't care about protagonist's gender. The only time i do care is when i want to read about specific topic, for example, related to social issues. Sometimes, i want to get a different perspective, and that does not mean that i can totally relate to a character. When i read a book with a black protagonist, teenager protagonist, etc., i just want to look at things through lens of their experience and struggle. In fact, human problems, drama, struggle have been the same throughout the history, i believe, so I can also relate to male protagonist, trying to figure out who he is, looking for meaning of life, because it's much more common experience than we tend to think