Michael Bond, the British author who gave the world Paddington Bear, has passed away after a prolific, six-decade writing career. A statement from his publisher, HarperCollins, said that “It is with great sadness that we announce that Michael Bond, CBE, the creator of one of Britain’s best-loved children’s characters, Paddington, died at home yesterday aged 91 following a short illness.”

The first of this beloved series of children’s books, which would go on to sell more than 35 million copies across the world, began simply: “Mr. and Mrs. Brown first met Paddington on a railway platform. IN fact, that was how he came to have such an unusual name for a bear, for Paddington was the name of the station.”

Bond published this first book of the series, called “A Bear Called Paddington,” in 1958, and didn’t stop writing until his death. His final story, “Paddington’s Finest Hour,” became available in April.

Born in January of 1926, Bond grew up in Reading, Berkshire, where he often visited Reading railway station to watch the steam-powered passenger train chug by—this cultivated in him a great love of trains.

Bond found himself dissatisfied at school, and left education at age 14, going on to work in a legal office, as an engineer’s assistant for the BBC, and even, for a short while, as a member of the aircrew in the Royal Air Force at age 17, serving in the British Army until 1947.

It was while Bond was stationed in Cairo with the army that he began writing, selling his first short story to London Opinion in 1945. Upon this success, he realized that he “wouldn’t mind being a writer,” according to an interview with The Guardian.

In 1958, while working as a cameraman for the BBC, Bond finally published the book which would define the rest of his career, and the world was introduced to “A Bear Called Paddington,” a bear from “Darkest Peru,” sent by his Aunt Lucy to the UK, jar of marmalade in hand.

By 1965, Bond’s writing income was such that he was able to give up his job at the BBC to write full-time. He went on to publish for an astonishing 59 years, much to the delight of both children and adults. His books have been translated in over 40 languages, and have inspired movies and a television series.

Bond was an author intimately connected to his fiction. “Paddington’s very real to me,” said Bond in a Guardian interview. “I think it’s something bears have. So he comes around with me in spirit and I think an awful lot of stories start because you see a sign or you hear some conversation and you think, ‘what if?’”

Bond also drew inspiration from a very different sort of experience—seeing evacuated children coming through the Reading train station during WWII. What Bond said to The Guardian of his memory of these poor children says much of his own caring heart.

“They all had a label round their neck with their name and address on and a little case or package containing all their treasured possessions. So Paddington, in a sense, was a refugee, and I do think that there’s no sadder sight than refugees.”

Bond’s enthusiasm for life, his curiosity, and his imagination also made their way into Paddington. Asked why he thought Paddington Bear remained so popular for so long, Bond replied that, “Paddington is eternally optimistic and always comes back for more, no matter how many times his hopes are dashed. For him, it’s simply the joy of a little bear who is an outsider getting into scrapes and mishaps – always with the best of intentions – and coming out on top every time.”

Bond wasn’t limited to his beloved bear, however, and was the author of more than 200 books, as well as an assortment of plays and screenplays. He was also a beloved father. His daughter, Karen Jankel, called him “the most wonderful father you can imagine” after his death, going on to say that “the whole world is lucky to have him.”

For this man, whose life was wrapped up in the written word, there could be no better legacy. He touched the hearts of millions of readers, young and old, and raised his own family with that same gentle love. The warm tributes that have poured in from all over the globe have been testament to this.

He will be missed.

CEO of HarperCollins, Charlie Redmayne, had a few final words to say of Bond in a statement released by the publisher.

“Michael Bond was one of the great children’s writers and at HarperCollins we are immensely fortunate to have published him and to have known him. He was a wonderful man and leaves behind one of the great literary legacies of our time.”

Bond is survived by his wife, Sue, as well as his children, Karen and Anthony.