"It’s true that we crave stories, but they shouldn’t always be treated as a kind of salvation.... Life may be shaped to look like a grand narrative, but there is plenty happening in the footnotes."

Johanna Thomas-Corr is the chief literary critic for Culture & Books at The Times. Her articles and reviews have also appeared in The Observer, the Financial Times, the New Statesman and the Evening Standard. Her work for the Times has been credited with reinvigorating arts coverage and increasing the influence of the Times and Sunday Times culture work.

She was recently the centre of attention over a warped quote from her review of Jordan Peterson's 12 More Rules for Life where she ended up being quoted favourably on the book despite leaving a scathing review. This sparked a scandal over misrepresentation in the publishing industry.