Arthur Gruppetta, who grew Merlin Publishers from a small bookshop to a powerhouse in Malta’s literary scene, has died aged 81, the company announced on Monday. 

Gruppetta’s son Chris, who now leads the publishing firm, described his father as Merlin’s “beating heart.” 

“He created the first ever Merlin books all those years ago, never stopped believing in Maltese books even when the odds were against and was the driving force behind us all till the very last. Nothing will ever be the same again,” Chris Gruppetta wrote in a statement published on the firm’s Facebook page. 

Born in 1944, Grupetta began working as a teacher before taking over the management of Merlin Library and the publishing house Merlin Publishers from his parents, Marie and Domenic Gruppetta, who founded the company in 1963. 

The company was named after the famous wizard in the mythical tale and Arthur was named after King Arthur, from the legend of Camelot. 

Gruppetta quickly got involved in the family business and within a few years had given it a major boost when he discovered the popular Ladybird books while on a trip to the UK. In 1966, Merlin began importing the books to Malta and they proved a massive success. 

In 1972, Merlin Publishers bought the rights for the Maltese language edition of Ladybird books. 

Merlin published several iconic Maltese children’s books, including Fra Mudest by Charles Casha in 1971. Decades later, the jolly friar character who gets into loads of mischief is still popular amongst young readers.

Gruppetta maintained that focus on Maltese authors throughout his career. Merlin served as publishers to many popular local authors including Trevor Zahra, Carmel G Cauchi and more contemporary artists such as Clare Azzopardi, Maria Grech Ganado, and Leanne Ellul.

In 2018, Gruppetta was awarded a Midalja Għall-Qadi tar-Repubblika during the Republic Day awards. 

Maltese authors took to social media to pay tribute to Gruppetta.

Author Immanuel Mifsud paid his respects to a personality “who played a major role in our literary history.”

Author and researcher Sergio Grech said Gruppetta’s work had allowed many Maltese children to read Maltese literary masterpieces.

“Sir Art, thank you for all the books you gave us. Now rest in peace,” author Clare Azzopardi wrote.

Other publishing houses, including Klabb Kotba Maltin and Kite Group, also paid tribute to Gruppetta.Â