Donn Byrne was born in New York City in 1889, but he was only born there because he presented himself to his parents while they were there on a business trip. Ireland ought to have been his birthplace since his father worked there as an architect and both his parents were proud citizens of that country. So unsurprisingly, before he was three months old, his parents took baby Donn Byrne back with them to Ireland to be raised.

He was an outstanding student from his earliest years onward, and almost equally enthusiastic about athletics. When not educating his mind, he was usually developing his muscles; as a young man he attained the light-weight boxing championship while attending Trinity College, Dublin (aka the University of Dublin). He knew all about horses too; he could ride with the best and manifested a more than academic (and also uncannily legendary) interest in horse racing.

In fact, he took a keen interest in whatever was going on in the life around him wherever he was, and getting about the world a good deal he turned his hand to many things. There was something beyond intriguing about his wit, his vivacity, his swiftly varying moods; he was not an author who did all his traveling in books and who dug up his facts about strange countries in a reference library. How much of personal experience went into his writing was probably more than he could have said himself. But when he was picturing any place that his imaginary people visited, you knew from his casual, intimate touches that he had been there and was remembering it while he wrote.

Although always interested in story-telling, it wasn’t until his second sojourn in the United States that Donn Byrne settled down seriously to literary work. He began by contributing poetry to American magazines, which he said were some of the worst poems ever written. There is no easy way of knowing if this is actually so because his poetry was never collected into a volume. However, he was always known to talk lightly of his own doings, so one should be ever wary of taking him at his own evaluation.

Nevertheless, not long after arriving in the USA, Donn Byrne was making a considerable reputation with his short stories. A collection of these, “Stories Without Heroes,” was his first book. Then following this collection came three novels in succession that were original enough in style and idea and fine enough in quality to establish the reputation of any writer—“The Wind Bloweth,” “Messer Marco Polo,” and “The Foolish Matrons.”

These novels were all written and published in America, and as it happened to be, America of the early twentieth century really knew how to appreciate them. His third novel enjoyed such a vogue in the USA that people finally became aware of him in Great Britain, and so the third, the second, then the first novel, in quick succession, got published there. Flush with his new-won fame, Donn Byrne went home again to Ireland and settled down there, forever to be among his own Irish people.

That was only fitting. It has been said that much of Donn Byrne’s success as a writer was attributable to his early Irish studies, drawing largely as he did on Irish literature and folklore. But strangely, despite a vibrant personality, he was also an excessively retiring author, almost never discussing his books, except in the intimacy of his family or old friends.

Certainly, no mere acquaintances took him for a writer, even though there was said to be a great curiosity among them over who Donn Byrne was and what it was he did for a living. It has also been said that one lady, unable to remain in ignorance any longer, asked his wife Dolly point-blank what her husband's profession was."Why, he's a bookmaker," replied Dolly, with her customary ready wit. And so the legend grew from there that handsome and vivacious Mr. Donn Byrne was spending his winters on the Riviera financed by his winnings at the racetracks. Donn Byrne was so pleased when he heard this he never troubled himself to correct this errononeous legend.

So then, who really was he, this Donn Byrne? This link will lead to a short bio. But to know him more intimately, you should read his fiction, for he forcefully lived vicariously through the extremely varied characters and stories he created. In keeping with this recommendation, you can find two of his stories right here. I am hoping that by introducing modern young readers and also older readers to illustrated, lightly adapted Donn Byrne boxing stories (“Irish & A Man’s Game) this great, largely unknown author will become widely known, and furthermore, that a legitimate Donn Byrne legend will firmly (and finally) be established. He deserves that.