RELIGIOUS SALES/E-BOOK SALES

Faith-based publishers reported a 22% increase in April from religious e-books compared to the same month last year, according to the latest figures available from the Association of American Publishers (AAP). The category also saw a rise of 47% for the year to date versus January-April 2011, with sales of $45.1 million.

In contrast, religious paperback sales experienced a 34% decrease for the year to date versus January-April 2011, with sales of nearly $57 million. In the same date range, religious hardcover sales were up nearly 6%, with sales of more than $100 million. Overall, book sales from religious publishers for the year to date versus the same time frame in 2011 saw almost a 5% drop to nearly $218 million.

Religious hardcover sales were up almost 5% in April over the same month the previous year to nearly $21 million, while religious paperback sales were down more than 48% for the same period, totaling nearly $12 million. Overall, book sales from religious presses saw almost a 15% decline to $47.4 million in April over the same month the previous year.

Overall, hardcover is still the dominant format for Children's/Young Adult (C/YA). C/YA physical book sales again demonstrated double-digit increases over April 2011 and over year-to-date 2011. E-books for that age again showed triple-digit gains in monthly and year-to-date comparisons. Some publishers attribute this to the ongoing success of blockbuster franchises, but also noted the escalating trend of adults reading YA titles, particularly in e-book format.

With 1,187 publishers reporting, AAP's Monthly StatShot report included data from Concordia Publishing House, Gospel Light, Moody Publishers, NavPress, Thomas Nelson and Tyndale House Publishers, among others in the Christian market.