The Well of Loneliness
The first novel in the English language recognised as having a lesbian theme is "The Well of Loneliness" (1928) by Radclyffe Hall, which a British court found obscene because it defended "unnatural practices between women". The book was banned in Britain for decades; this is in the context of the similar censorship of "Lady Chatterley's Lover", which also had a theme of transgressive female sexuality, albeit heterosexual. In the United States, "The Well of Loneliness" survived legal challenges in New York and the U.S. Customs Court.