How do you answer questions like: How big is a bear or a bison? How big is scat and what is it? or How do you learn about the animals of Yellowstone National Park without "a close encounter of the scary kind?"

In Who Pooped in the Park? both Gary D. Robson of Red Lodge, Montana and illustrator Elijah Brady Clark of Bozeman, Montana answer these and many other questions for children. Comparing the weight of a bison to that of a small car or the size of elk poop to jelly beans puts the information in a familiar form that children can understand.

Throughout the book there are insets called "Straight Poop" that give further information. One "Straight Poop" explains how Plains Indians used "buffalo chips" as fuel for cooking and heat when there was no wood nearby. Other insets answer the questions, "Why do you rarely find badger poop?" and "How much does a moose antler weight?"

As the children read the book, it takes them on a hike into the back country as they learn about the animals that live in Yellowstone. They learn the difference between a wolf and a dog by their scat and tracks, and how wolves stalk and hunt their prey.

Who Pooped in the Park? is a delightful book for children to read before and during a hike into the back country of Yellowstone. The author and the illustrator have done a great and realistic job of presenting a unique approach for kids to discover the animals of Yellowstone. I find it to be one of the best children's books I have seen on the animals of the Yellowstone area. I look forward to recommending it to children who want to explore, either by reading or by hiking, the wilds of Yellowstone National Park.