Survey shows

Christian book buyers are purchasing often and with a variety of products in mind, a new survey shows.

Fifty-seven percent of buyers surveyed said they had purchased a book for themselves or as a gift in the last month. Thirty-eight percent said they are buying more Christian books now than they did two years ago.

The new look at the purchase of Christian books comes from a survey of 1,000 consumers who buy Christian books from Christian- and general-market outlets. It was jointly commissioned by Publisher’s Weekly magazine and The Parable Group, an association of almost 300 independently owned Christian retail outlets.

Researchers found that Christian book buyers are most interested in getting more Christian fiction (19 percent), Bible study books (12 percent) and inspirational titles (12 percent). Asked about where they prefer the overall shopping experience, consumers were evenly divided between religious bookstores and general-market stores such as Barnes & Noble, Borders and B. Dalton.

Three-fourths of Christian book buyers said they had purchased general-interest books in the last year. Top categories of general-interest books included general fiction, cookbooks, historical fiction and mysteries.

(RNS)