In 1947, a set of Beckett manuscripts was sent to the Seuil publishers. These texts were read by a number of the publisher’s professional readers, among them Albert Béguin, and were finally refused. This article recounts the reasons for the rejection, using unpublished archives. This refusal is a chance to take a look at the role played by manuscript readers, who are the first to be involved in the process of selecting works for publishing, and therefore have an important function in literary production.