The National Book Council Salutes the Memory of Lina Brockdorff 

The National Book Council salutes the memory of award-winning prose writer, poet, broadcaster and educator Lina Brockdorff, who passed away on 10 February 2026 at the age of 95. 

Among her best known works in Sireni u Serenati (2004), which recounts Brockdorff’s experiences of WWII, and which won the ‘Best Novel – Non-Fiction’ prize at the National Book Prize in its year of publication. The book would go on to be serialised for radio, with an English translation by Alfred Palma to follow in 2016 (incidentally, Palma himself passed away late last year). Her historical novel Luciano, first published in 2016, was also released in an English edition, translated by Rose Marie Caruana and published in 2019. 

Brockdorff also boasted an impressively prolific output as a short story writer, and by the end of her life had over 300 stories to her name, published across various volumes – the latest of which was Taħt il-Ħarruba u stejjer oħra, published by Horizons in 2023. 

But it was in the field of broadcasting where she first began to nurture her talents as a storyteller. Working for Rediffusion throughout the 1950s and 60s, Brockdorff wrote and produced a number of programmes, as well as radio plays such as Il-Fqajjar t’Assisi. 

Brockdorff served as a council member of L-Akkademja tal-Malti between 2004 and 2005, and remained a member all throughout her life. In 2020, she was awarded the Gold Medal at the Ġieħ l-Akkademja tal-Malti awards, for her efforts in expanding and promoting Maltese literature. She also served as president of the Għaqda Letterarja Maltija, as well as being a member of the Għaqda Poeti Maltin. 

The National Book Council extends its condolences to the family members, friends, and readers of Lina Brockdorff.