Common Cause tells the story of Jeremy Robson, publisher of an independent newspaper in the fictional Midwestern town of Fenchester. Fenchester was settled by German immigrants, and German-Americans dominate the town's economic and social elite. With the advent of World War I, Robson's pro-American stance and denunciations of German-American fealty to Germany lead local plutocrats to withhold advertising from his newspaper in order to drive him out of business. Ultimately, however, Robson's vision of an inclusive society prevails.

Common Cause provides a nuanced look at the home-front atmosphere that existed in parts of the United States before and during the Great War, exploring themes of patriotism, jingoism, citizenship, and exclusion. An introduction and explanatory notes by John Maxwell Hamilton and Amy Solomon Whitehead provide context.