'It seems to take an awful lot of good people to make a place happy, but just a handful of mischief-makers to turn it bad,' wrote Alan Gibbons, setting the scene for his novel Caught in the Crossfire.
The statement itself is not only true, it also illustrates what a good book Gibbons has written.
A good book needs a solid story. Crossfire examines the scourge of racism and how views have changed in many western countries in the post-September 11 era.
The story is set in a fictional, ethnically mixed town in England called Oakfield.
The terrorist attacks in the United States changed the world, including Oakfield. Trust between the white community and its Muslim neighbours has worn thin following a series of incidents. People are harbouring bad feelings.
Are the social conflicts avoidable? Or is religious infighting inevitable?
The answers to these questions are explored through the lives of six teenagers in Oakfield. Their experiences constitute the second element of the book - a stirring plot.
