Letters to the Editor
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there actually is some research about this...
There actually is some research about the gender of lead protaganists, especially in children's literature - market research.
Market research on the preferences of kids when reading children/young adult fiction shows that boys are more interested in reading and more likely to finish books with a male lead character. Girls on the other hand are equally likely to be interested in a book with either a male or female lead. I don't know why this is- it could be because women can more easily identify with both genders, or it could be that there is a social-bias towards making boys NOT identify with women.
Either way, the research shows that if you want your kids book to sell to both boys & girls (thus having more potential for overall sales), it is best to have a male protaganist. This isn't to say there shouldn't be strong female characters in the book (eg Hermione from Harry Potter), it just means that the main character/voice needs to be male in order to sell the story to boys.
In light of said market research, it is absolutely no wonder that pixar's movies all star a male lead. They want to pack the theaters with both men AND women, not just women. You can't really blame pixar for that...