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Counting on Data: What Religion Sales Numbers Say, and Don't
Counting religion book sales is an exercise in balancing data and definition. No one source has all the numbers; the category "religion" can contain everything from fiction and history to memoir and self-help, and more. But because publishing is a numbers-driven game, everyone would love better data for these changing economic times, preferably with good news. A few signs point in a positive direction.
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In Profile
Young writers report, reflect
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Immortal Subject: Near-Death, Afterlife in Vogue
After a decade of terror attacks, wars, and economic disasters, publishers have a hunch that weary readers are looking ahead—far ahead—to better times and wondering what the afterlife might hold.
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Catholic Bestsellers, July 2010
Matthew Kelly predominates on the hardcover list (with four titles), C.S. Lewis the paperback list (with three titles), while handbooks for youth and teens predominate on the list for children and young people.
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Religion in Review, July 2010
Original Religion BookLine reviews include The Edge of the Divine by Sandi Patty; How to Be Sick: A Buddhist-Inspired Guide for the Chronically Ill and Their Caregivers by Toni Bernhard; The Day Metallica Came to Church: Searching for the Everywhere God in Everything by John Van Sloten; Women, Sex, and the Church: A Case for Catholic Teaching, edited by Erika Bachiochi; When Christians Get It Wrong by Adam Hamilton; and a new contemporary Amish novel by Beth Wiseman, Seek Me with All Your Heart. Also a sneak peek at religion reviews coming in the August 9 issue of PW: Tamam Kahn’s Untold: A History of the Wives of Prophet Muhammad and Mary Beth Chapman’s Choosing to SEE: A Journey of Struggle and Hope, as well as a first look at starred reviews: Michael Coogan’s God and Sex: What the Bible Really Says and Joseph Telushkin’s Hillel: If Not Now, When?
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Answering St. Teresa's Call
In the midst of illness, Claudia Mair Burney discovered the writings of St. Teresa of Avila, and it was a wakeup call for her soul. Heeding that call, Burney wrote God Alone Is Enough: A Spirited Journey with Teresa of Avila (Paraclete Press, July), part spiritual biography (Teresa's), spiritual memoir (Burney's), and contemplative prayer how-to.
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Short Takes
EP Books and Cumberland Valley Bible Book Service have formed a nonprofit company to distribute English-language Christian books in the U.S. and Canada, as well as books in English, French, and Russian in Africa, Russia, and other eastern European countries.... WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group, Random House’s Christian publishing division, has added two publicity staffers in its Colorado Springs, Colo., offices.... CBA Executive Director Curtis Riskey has closed his store, B.A.S.I.C. Books and Cafe, in Oshkosh, Wis..... Rev. Lawrence Boadt, a leading Catholic biblical scholar and longtime president of Paulist Press, died in Mahwah, N.J., on July 24, 2010....
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Barry Schwartz, New Jewish Publication Society Head, a Teacher at Heart
When Barry L. Schwartz began his first job in the publishing industry on July 1, he started at the top: CEO of the 122-year-old Jewish Publication Society. At 52, Schwartz brings an unusual yet relevant résumé to an institution known for producing scholarly as well as popular Jewish titles. A Reform rabbi, he’s served on JPS’s rabbinic advisory board as well as its editorial committee.
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The 'Mockingbird' Book That Could
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of To Kill a Mockingbird, a key book in the canon of American literature, and that anniversary is being marked in various ways. Now Christian publisher Tyndale House is hurrying out a book that treats the spiritual themes of the classic from a Christian perspective, a book that almost didn’t make it to market.
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Editor's Note, July 2010
Here's the good news: an Above the Treeline report saw a 1% uptick in sales for large indie bookstores in the first half of 2010. Many religion specialty retailers are among the 51 stores that reported. That increase, though small, still moves religion books in the right direction.
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Zondervan Delays Palin Bio for Kids Indefinitely
Speaking Up: The Sarah Palin Story, a biography of Sarah Palin aimed at 9-12 year olds and written by Kim Washburn was slated to pub in October, but has been delayed "indefinitely."
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News Briefs
Author Mosab Hassan Yousef attracted long lines for a signing of his bestselling memoir Son of Hamas; debuting at ICRS was Somersault, a consulting and publishing services company formed by five Zondervan veterans; ECPA, which was left holding a $250,000 debt following an innovative but unsuccessful consumer-focused book show in 2009, has economized and trimmed debt; former CBA president-CEO Bill Anderson was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award; WinePress Publishing was among the growing self-publishing presence in the Christian market; big books coming this fall include The Faith and Values of Sarah Palin: What She Believes and What It Means for America by Stephen Mansfield and David A. Holland (at left).
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Religion in Review
Original RBL reviews include Sharon L. Baker’s Razing Hell (Westminster John Knox), Michael Brenner’s A Short History of the Jews (Princeton Univ.), and Anne Jackson’s Permission to Speak Freely: Essays and Art on Fear, Confession, and Grace (Thomas Nelson). A sneak peek at starred reviews coming in PW’s July 12 issue: Newman’s Unquiet Grave: The Reluctant Saint by John Cornwell (Continuum) and The Tenth Parallel: Dispatches from the Fault Line Between Christianity and Islam by Eliza Griswold (FSG).
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Meet Me in St. Louis: Christian Retailers See Scaled-Down Show, but Still Find Benefits
The International Christian Retail Show met June 27-30 in St. Louis. Total convention attendance--including retailers, exhibitors, professional, and internationals--was down from the peak year of 1999 and up only slightly from last year, according to CBA show management. Executive director Curtis Riskey said exhibitor numbers were up, though booth space remained the same. Those in attendance were generally positive, with international attendees enthusiastic.
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Christian Fiction Awards Honor Top Novelists, Pioneering Editor
Those plugged in to the live blog of the 2010 Christy Awards got virtual tiramisu and the news as it happened Saturday (June 26) at ICRS, when awards recognizing the best in Christian fiction in 2009 were presented to nine authors. Novelist Lisa Samson (at left) keynoted the event, established in 1999 to recognize quality fiction written and published from a Christian worldview. Samson was herself a winner for best contemporary stand-alone novel.
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Editor's Note
The Christian Booksellers Association convention, now known as the International Christian Retailers Show, has been an industry tradition for more than 60 years. Retailers no longer come to the show to place orders, but those who spoke with RBL this week emphasized the continuing importance of face time with publishers, and more...
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Top Christian Retailers Named
Jim and Lorraine Valk of Banner Books Parable Christian Store of St. Joseph in St. Joseph, Mich., won top honors in excellence at a CBA members luncheon Monday. Other retailers were recognized as well.
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InProfile: Max Lucado: 25 Years and Counting
In 1985, a young minister named Max Lucado wrote On the Anvil. Fast forward 25 years--75 titles and 65 million books sold later--and that same minister, a little older, is getting ready for the publication of Outlive Your Life: You Were Made to Make a Difference (Thomas Nelson, Sept.). Lucado, minister of preaching at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, Tex., has something to say, and millions who want to hear it.
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June 2010 Christian Bestsellers
The top 15 hardcover and paperback bestsellers from Christian booksellers.
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