Tropic of Cancer

Notorious for its explicit sexuality, this influential novel first emerged in 1934 and faced a ban in the U.S. Its 1961 re-publication sparked obscenity trials that challenged American pornography laws, culminating in a Supreme Court decision in 1964 that deemed it non-obscene. Celebrated for its candid exploration of life and art, it holds a significant place in 20th-century literature and is recognized by the Modern Library as one of the top 100 novels ever published.