Eugene McCabe is the author of Cyril’s Woodland Quest, for readers age 10+. McCabe was born in Glasgow in 1930 to a Fermanagh mother and a Cavan father. In 1939 his grandfather bought a farm in Clones, Co Monaghan, and McCabe moved there in 1954.

A well-known writer for theatre, Eugene McCabe began writing for television when RTÉ began in 1960. In 1964, his play King of the Castle was the success of that year's Dublin Theatre Festival.

Eugene lived with his wife Margo in Clones, and has three sons and one daughter. Originally published as Cyril the Squirrel, this popular book was reissued by O'Brien Press as Cyril's Woodland Quest in September Autumn 2001. Eugene died in 2020.