Merlin Library

Merlin Library is a Maltese bookshop with a particular strength in children's reading and school supplies, and its Sliema branch on Bisazza Street puts that range within easy reach of the seafront and the busy shopping streets nearby. For UK visitors it is a handy place to find a paperback for the beach, a picture book for a child or a notebook when you have run out of paper. For British families living on the island, it is also a source of the textbooks and stationery that Maltese schools ask for.

The shop is part of a wider business with several outlets and a large online catalogue. Our directory lists it among the bookshops in Malta, alongside independent sellers of every size.

A bookseller with deep roots in Maltese schools

Merlin Library is run by Audio Visual Centre Ltd, a company that has imported and distributed books since 1971. Its activities cover retail shops and wholesale supply in Malta, and it supplies educational products to Maltese schools, academies and colleges, from books to audio visual equipment, interactive classroom technology and school furniture.

The Merlin name itself has supplied primary, secondary and sixth form textbooks since 1978. The Blata l-Bajda shop is the only bookshop in Malta that keeps textbooks in stock all year round, together with revision and self-study material for most subjects. Merlin was also the first Maltese bookseller to bring children's authors into schools to talk to pupils, beginning in 2003 with Lynne Reid Banks, and many others have followed.

What you can buy

The core of the range is children's books. The shop stocks thousands of titles for readers from three months old up to young adults, including picture books, activity books, early learning material and books designed to be friendly to dyslexic readers. Adults are looked after too, with fiction in genres such as crime, fantasy, romance, historical fiction and classics, and non-fiction covering travel, history, cookery, biography, health and popular science.

Stationery is the other big line: copybooks, pens and pencils, art and craft supplies, folders, calculators, lunch boxes and school essentials. Gift items and bargain books sit alongside. Prices are shown in euros, and the online shop at the time of writing included offers such as 10% off stationery and up to 17% off textbooks, with a price match guarantee on textbooks. Offers change, so check what applies when you order.

Ordering online and collecting in store

If you are not passing through Sliema, the same stock can be ordered online. Merlin offers free delivery across Malta and Gozo on orders over €25, and you can choose in-store pickup instead. That suits visitors who want to order ahead and collect on arrival, and residents who prefer to browse before they commit.

Textbook ordering follows a four-step process: choose the education level, the school, the grade and then the books. At the time of writing, the primary, secondary, sixth form and University of Malta booklists were marked as coming soon. A loyalty scheme called the Wizzies Club gives children who join special discounts.

Visiting Sliema and the other branches

Sliema is Malta's main promenade town, with the ferry to Valletta running from the waterfront and plenty of choice if you want to stay in Sliema. A browse in Merlin Library fits neatly into a day of shopping and walking along the front, followed by a trip across the harbour using our Valletta guide. Another Merlin outlet is at the Shoreline Mall in Kalkara, close to the Three Cities, and the Blata l-Bajda shop is the one with published opening hours.

If your trip includes language study, the neighbouring language schools such as AM Language are close by, and a good dictionary or English language teaching book is easy to find in the non-fiction range.

Planning your trip and getting in touch

Whether you are on holiday or settling in, bookshops are a pleasant way to get a feel for a place. If you are weighing up a move, our guide to relocating to Malta explains what to expect, and our things to do in Malta page covers days out beyond the shops, and the Malta weather guide helps you pick a good week for them.

To ask about stock, a special order or how collection works at the Sliema branch, use the VisitMalta.co.uk enquiry form on this page and we will pass your message to the business.