Betsy Byars

Betsy Byars
BornBetsy Cromer
(1928-08-07)August 7, 1928
Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.
DiedFebruary 26, 2020(2020-02-26) (aged 91)
Seneca, South Carolina, U.S.
OccupationChildren's author, novelist, freelance writer
Education
Period1962–2010
GenreChildren's fiction, Young adult fiction, Historical fiction, Realistic fiction
Notable works
Notable awardsNewbery Medal
1971
National Book Award
1981
Website
betsybyars.com

Betsy Byars (née Cromer; August 7, 1928 – February 26, 2020) was an American author of children's books. Her novel Summer of the Swans won the 1971 Newbery Medal. She has also received a National Book Award for Young People's Literature for The Night Swimmers (1980) and an Edgar Award for Wanted... Mud Blossom (1991).

Byars has been called "one of the ten best writers for children in the world" by Nancy Chambers, editor of the British literary journal Signal, and in 1987 Byars received the Regina Medal for lifetime achievement from the Catholic Library Association. Due to the popularity of her books with children, she was listed as one of the Educational Paperback Association's top 100 authors.