Betsy Cromer Byars (August 7, 1928 – February 26, 2020) was an American children's writer. 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). Because of the popularity of her books with children, she has also been listed as one of the Educational Paperback Association's top 100 authors. She was born in Charlotte, North Carolina.