The Map Trap is a short book written by Andrew Clements.  The story focuses on a boy named Alton Ziegler.  Alton is a socially-awkward sixth-grader who loves to draw maps.  He has a large collection of maps that he has created over the years.  He keeps a stash of some of the maps hidden from others, because they contain personal opinions that could offend some of his classmates and teachers.  One day, Alton decides to show some of the secret maps to a classmate named Quint, in an attempt to impress him.  Soon after leaving school, however, Alton realizes that he forgot his maps.  He tries to recover them but they have been stolen.  Alton now needs to track down the perpetrator before the maps are revealed to the entire school.

I really enjoyed reading this book for a number of reasons.  One thing I enjoyed was the fast and entertaining plot that is filled with surprising twists and turns.  It was difficult to put this book down from the moment I began reading it.  Another thing I really liked about this story was Alton himself.  I enjoyed watching his character develop and grow to become more mature as an individual.  I also really liked how realistic this book felt.  It seems like it could have actually happened in real life.  Overall, this book is very enjoyable with an engaging plot and interesting characters.  It seems to be targeted toward younger audiences, but I would still recommend it to readers of all ages.