CONGRATULATIONS TO DR. JAMES RIPLEY

Source Summary

Congratulations to Dr. James Ripley, winner of the Library of the Year award for the United Kingdom presented by the 2026 British Book Awards, with Dr. Emily Pickard and in partnership with Oxgangs Library, Saughton Library at HMS Edinburgh, and the Mobile Library Service in Scotland. They received this award for implementing a "Secret Santa" program, where people in custody were able to receive gift-wrapped books to open on Christmas Day last year. Dr. James Ripley said, "Winning this award has been surreal from the start... Prison libraries are special, a strange mix of public and academic whose populations range from the functionally illiterate to those undertaking university degrees. Unfortunately, reoffending is all too common within prison populations, but it is our hope that our presence and professionalism can help to influence individuals away from reoffending." The awards ceremony took place in London, England, following the teams winning the Library of the Year for Scotland earlier in 2026. The beginning of this journey dates back to a special public school teacher, Ms. M. McCormick, at Jerseyville Public School, showing the importance of public and secondary schools in supporting students who will, in turn, give back to their communities. Dr. Ripley (BA, BFA, MLIS, Ph.D.) is a graduate of Parkside High School, Dundas; the University of Guelph; Lethbridge University; and Western University. He has been the librarian at HMS Edinburgh for the past four years but has over 25 years of experience in academic, legal deposit, and special libraries. In addition, he is an Au'Oral Narrative scholar, a published poet, the editor of Diesel (the Saughton Poetry Journal), and a prolific Letterboxd reviewer.