Irene Byers facts for kids

Irene Byers was an English writer who wrote many books, especially for children. She was born in 1906 or 1907. She wrote about forty books, mostly published in the 1950s and 1960s. She also wrote poems.

About Irene Byers' Life

Irene Byers started her career as a journalist. She interviewed famous people like the actors John Gielgud and Sybil Thorndike. Around 1930, she married Cyril Byers and stopped working for a while. But when her children went to school, she started writing again. During World War II, she even wrote poems for her children. Irene was a regular writer for the BBC radio show Woman's Hour. Two of her books were even turned into serial stories for Children's Hour. She was also an active member of the Croydon Writers' Circle, a group that supported her writing.

Irene Byers' Books and Stories

Many of Irene Byers' books were written for children. Some of them were about nature. Her 1953 book, The Young Brevingtons, was an adventure story. It was about a country family who moved to a city neighborhood. The story showed how the children dealt with their new surroundings and the kids who lived there. Reviewers said the book dealt with real problems and adventures. Her 1954 book, Tim of Tamberly Forest, was made into a four-part radio play for BBC Children's Hour in 1955. This story was about a boy who loved trees and wanted to work in a forest. He learned about forestry, from planting tiny trees to dealing with forest fires. Another one of her books, Jewel of the Jungle, was also broadcast on Children's Hour in July 1956.

List of Books by Irene Byers

• The Circus, and other verses for children, illustrated by Donald Craig (1946)
• Our Outdoor Friends (1949-1952)
• Mystery at Barber's Reach, illustrated by A. E. Batchelor (1950)
• The Adventures of the Floating Flat, illustrated by Robert Johnston (1952)
• The First [etc.] Book of Our Outdoor Friends, illustrated by Constance Marshall (1952)
• The Young Brevingtons (1953)
• Tim of Tamberly Forest (1954)
• Out and about Tales, illustrated by Paxton Chadwick (1954)
• The Mystery of Midway Mill (1955)
• Catherine of Connors (1955)
• Adventure at Fairborough's Farm (1955)
• Adventure at Dillington Dene (1956)
• The Strange Story of Pippin Wood, illustrated by Mary Shillabeer (1956)
• The Sign of the Dolphin (1956)
• The Missing Masterpiece (1957)
• Jewel of the Jungle (1957)
• Adventure at the Blue Cockatoo (1958)
• Flowers for Melissa (1958)
• Kennel Maid Sally (1960)
• The Adventure road to reading, etc. (1961)
• Farm on the Fjord (1961)
• Tim returns to Tamberly (1962)
• Silka the Seal, illustrated by George Adamson (1962)
• Two on the Trail, illustrated by Joseph Acheson (1963)
• Foresters of Fourways, illustrated by Barry Gurbutt (1963)
• Joanna joins the Zoo, illustrated by Jillian Willett (1964)
• Trouble at Tamberly (1964)
• The Merediths of Mappins, illustrated by Victor Ambrus (1964); US edition: The Mystery at Mappins, illustrated by Victor Ambrus (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1964)
• Magic in her Fingers, illustrated by Jillian Willett (1965)
• Half-day Thursday (1966)
• Foresters afield, illustrated by Michael Whittlesea (1966)
• Danny finds a family, illustrated by Sheila Bewley (1966)
• The House of the Speckled Browns, illustrated by Victor Ambrus (1967)
• The stage under the cedars, illustrated by Michael Charlton (1969)
• Cameras on Carolyn, illustrated by Michael Charlton (1971)
• Timothy and Tiptoes, illustrated by Lynette Hemmant (1974)
• Tiptoes wins through, illustrated by Lynette Hemmant (1976)
• Tiptoes and the big race, illustrated by Lynette Hemmant (1979)
• Fox on the pavement, illustrated by Gabrielle Stoddart (1984)
• Rhymes and reveries (1989)
• Rhymes and remembrances (c1990)

Books in Other Languages

Irene Byers' books have been translated into many different languages. Some of these include Dutch, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Swedish.

• Het geheim van de boerderij, translated into Dutch from Adventure at Fairborough's Farm. (1957)
• Penny zoekt de dader, translated into Dutch. (c. 1958)
• De gevaarlijke bloem uit het oerwoud, translated into Dutch from Jewel of the Jungle. (1958)
• Bloemen voor Melissa, translated into Dutch from Flowers for Melissa. (1960)
• De rit in de nacht, translated into Dutch from The Strange Story of Pippin Wood. (1961)
• Avontuur op een woonboot, translated into Dutch from The Adventure of the Floating Flat. (1964)
• Silka, der Seehund, translated into German from Silka the Seal. (1969)
• Jenny und lauter Tiere: Ein Mädchen im Zoo, translated into German from Joanna Joins the Zoo. (1967)
• Il ciondolo rapito, translated into Italian. (1959)
• Três diabretes, translated into Portuguese. (1967)
• Kennelflickan, translated into Swedish from Kennel Maid Sally. (1962)
• Familjen på Mappins, translated into Swedish. (1965)
• Juvelkuppen, translated into Swedish from Two on the Trail. (1973)