The arrival of photography in the visual arts raised questions about the role of painting, as it could reproduce reality more effectively. This led to a reevaluation of how art could represent the world. Similarly, in literature, the early 20th century saw a crisis in mimesis — the ability of art to imitate reality — as naturalism, a style rooted in scientific observation, began to feel outdated. Reality was increasingly viewed as subjective, and time became more about the flow of thoughts. This shift gave rise to modernist writing, especially the stream of consciousness technique, which focused on the inner lives of characters. Authors like James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, and Marcel Proust became key figures in this movement. Dorothy Richardson, born in 1873 near Oxford and who died in 1957 in Kent, was a pioneer of stream of consciousness writing, yet her work has often been overlooked in literary history. She published Toits pointus in 1915, which is considered the first novel written in this style, one year before Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Richardson’s life was shaped by personal and professional experiences, including the financial failure of her father, time spent teaching in Germany, a return to England, her association with the Bloomsbury group, feminist views, a friendship with H.G. Wells, and a marriage to an illustrator with tuberculosis who was fifteen years younger than her. These experiences deeply influenced her writing and her role as a literary critic. Starting with Toits pointus, Richardson worked on an autobiographical novel series titled Pèlerinage, which would eventually consist of thirteen volumes. She regarded the entire series as a single, continuous novel. This month, Toits pointus followed by Eau morte is being published by Editions du Chemin de Fer. The edition includes a translation by Marie-Odile Probst and offers readers a chance to experience Richardson’s prose, which Virginia Woolf, author of Mrs Dalloway, described as having invented "the psychological sentence of female gender." The book follows Miriam, the narrator and alter ego of Richardson, as she leaves her family in England for Germany. The story explores themes of personal freedom and the transition from a restrictive social environment to a new beginning. The narrative begins with Miriam’s departure, as she must leave her parents and siblings, being the eldest, due to her father's financial ruin. This event also serves as a symbolic act of self-liberation. Returning to England, Miriam becomes a governess, and the novel captures her detailed observations of life and self-discovery. The prose offers a series of small, insightful moments, reflecting the transient and incomplete nature of human experience. Pèlerinage, vol. 1: Toits pointus followed by Eau morte is available in a limited print run of 2500 copies, priced at 23.50 €, with 480 pages and ISBN: 9782490356706.