At the time of publication, Tomlinson was a journalist and novelist of some note. His first published work in 1912 The Sea and the Jungle showed considerable promise and he was made a war correspondent in Belgium and France in 1914. Tomlinson became official war correspondent at British Headquarters in France, 1914-17. Here, he met H.W. Massingham, who made him assistant editor at The Nation. Tomlinson held the post until 1923.
He continued to publish books throughout the twenties and thirties, turning his hand to fiction. These became increasingly preoccupied with his hatred of war and hampered somewhat by the overt moral code underpinning them. His polemic on the First World War, Mars His Idiot, was published as the Second World War appeared increasingly likely. This is a very desirable set, Tomlinson’s extensive annotations to his proof show him refining and frequently strengthening his arguments even as the book went to press, and offer a fascinating commentary on the political debate over appeasement.
