An Apple Books Classic edition.

The same clear-eyed sincerity that made Radclyffe Hall’s poignant novel so radical in 1928 is the reason it endures as a vital work of queer literature today.

Stephen’s aristocratic parents couldn’t have predicted that her traditionally male name would reflect her disposition. But it’s not just Stephen’s tomboy personality that sets her apart; she’s also always been attracted to women. And so, from the upper-class circles of Worcestershire to the literary world of London, her truest self can exist only on the margins.

When Stephen meets Mary while serving in the ambulance corps during World War I, the possibility of happiness seems precariously within her grasp. Dealing honestly with not just sexuality and gender norms, but with the pain of isolation, this is a startlingly honest vision of queer life in the 1920s.