Khyrunnisa A. is an Indian author of children's fiction, speaker, academic and columnist who also writes for adults.

Thirteen-year-old Amar Kishen, aka Butterfingers, now features in the eponymous Butterfingers series of novels and short story collections published by Puffin, the children's imprint of Penguin Random House India.

Shashi Tharoor had this to say about the book, 'Khyrunnisa's oeuvre now has some unique and lovely animal stories giving it the resonance of a Panchatantra for the contemporary world.'

[6] In 2024, the Malayalam translation of Tongue in Cheek: the Funny Side of Life was published by Mathrubhumi Books under the title Kulchayum Phulkayum... Pinne Nyanum .

She writes stories regularly for the children's magazine, Dimdima, a Bhavan's publication.

Butterfingers, Khyrunnisa's entry for the Annual All India Tinkle Short story competition for adult writers of children's fiction in 1996, won her the second prize.

She continues to reside in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, with her husband P. Vijaya Kumar, a former professor of English and the grandson of Mahakavi Kumaran Asan, who was one of the triumvirate poets of Kerala,a philosopher, a social reformer and a disciple of Sree Narayana Guru.

Khyrunnisa did her schooling in Holy Angel's Convent Trivandrum, and her undergraduate studies in All Saints College and postgraduate as well as M Phil.

[14] Khyrunnisa worked as associate professor of English at All Saints' College, Thiruvananthapuram.

She was appointed Management Trainee in Punjab National Bank and worked there for two years before resigning to take up a teaching job at All Saints' College.

She has freelanced for publications like Outlook Traveller, Manorama Year Book and Kerala Calling, among others.

[12] The Butterfinger series revolves around the escapades of thirteen-year-old Amar Kishen, a class VIII student of the fictitious Green Park Higher Secondary School.

[15] Butterfingers, named after Khyrunnisa's son, Amar, first appeared in 2006 in Tinkle, a fortnightly Indian children's magazine, as a regular comic-strip character.

[6] Puffin (Penguin Random House) came out with a hundred-page comic book, titled The World of Butterfingers: Adventure in Texas and Other Stories and illustrated by Abhijeet Kini.

Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, former Indian cricket captain, wrote of Howzzat Butterfingers!

Shashi Tharoor, writer, MP and diplomat, complimented Khyrunnisa 'not just for creating Butterfingers, but for enriching Indian writing with world-class children's literature.'