If you care
about the ongoing availability of solid Christian books, you may
want to read the cover story, “How to Save the Christian Bookstore”
in the April 2008 issue of Christianity Today magazine. Cindy
Crosby, a former Christian bookstore owner, describes the “roller
coaster ride” Christian retail has taken over the last 20 years.
Drawing from
statistics provided by the CBA, the major trade association for
Christian retailers, Crosby notes that of the estimated 4,000
Christian retail stores in the mid 1980s, about 2,800 remain today.
While 98 new stores opened in 2007, another 160 closed.
The problem is
not a lack of interest in Christian books. Demand is high for
popular Christian writing, as the religion section of big box stores
like Chapters-Indigo or Barnes & Nobles reveals.
But this
popularity may well be part of the problem. Crosby quotes Lynn
Garrett, senior religion editor of Publishers Weekly, who
says: “Blockbusters like The Prayer of Jabez and The
Purpose Driven Life ended up doing more harm than good for
Christian booksellers.”
Bookstore
chains, large discounters and the big box stores were able to sell
these books at discounts simply out of reach for independent
Christian retailers. The sheer popularity of these books, with their
deep price cuts, lured Christians away from smaller Christian
stores.
As she
describes current challenges facing Christian bookstores, Crosby
states something that should give every Christian pause for thought.
In recounting her own Christian retail experience between 1983 and
1993 Crosby says, “We sold everything from curricula to candles,
communion bread to contemporary fiction…
Serious reference volumes and niche books that met a felt need
stayed on the shelf, sometimes collecting dust…”
Near the end
of her article, Crosby writes: “Displaying shelves full of books
that meet niche needs but sell very few copies may be an indulgence
today's retailers can't afford.”
From the
perspective of business profitability, I see her point. Retailers
must sell or sink. And while the appetite for Christian writing
remains high, books of a serious theological nature still find their
way into far too few hands.
Christians
cannot expect the big box stores to care about anything more than
stocking their shelves with what sells. And if you've browsed
Chapters, Wal-Mart, Costco and other large chains, you know that
what sells is often not the best that is available in Christian
reading.
But that leads
to another danger. Publishers also must survive, and the smaller the
potential market for a title, the less chance an author has in
getting his or her book published. If we are not careful, we will
find ourselves bereft of serious Christian writing, of literature
that expands our understanding of the great God we love and serve.
For example,
Heather Kendall's A Tale of Two Kingdoms (Guardian Books,
2006) is an accessible, useful book enabling readers to see the
history of salvation as it unfolds through the pages of Scripture.
The late Geoff
Adams, who served many years as principal of the Toronto Baptist
Seminary, saw Kendall's book as a “great tool” for Bible students
and readers, noting that it “traces the unfolding history of
salvation described in the Holy Scriptures as it presents the
antagonism between the Kingdom of Christ and the kingdom of Satan.”
He describes
Kendall's book as “lucid and interesting” and written in a
“non-technical manner.” Each of the 16 chapters concludes with
several “Points to Ponder” making it an excellent choice for small
groups, Sunday School classes or personal Bible study. A “Timeline
of Key People and Events” and an extensive bibliography for those
desiring further study rounds out this engaging treatment of the
biblical story.
Despite
lacking the high-level recognition of a Philip Yancey or of W
Publishing, the book is available online through Barnes & Noble and
in Mitchell Family Bookstores (Ontario). The author's website
www.tale2k.com has more details. I suspect Kendall's book is an
exception. Far too many excellent Christian books languish for lack
of visibility to the Christian buying public.
How can we
address the challenge of keeping Christian bookstores open and of
getting publishers to continue publishing substantial Christian
literature? At the risk of sounding simplistic, I suggest pastors
take the initiative in recommending worthwhile reading choices to
their people. Encourage them to frequent Christian bookstores,
asking for important books-books that truly challenge the mind and
feed the soul.
Both Christian
publishers and retailers must survive by selling a product. Where
there is demand, there will be product availability. The solution
resides within our purses and wallets and within our willingness to
make wise reading choices.
David Daniels
is book reviews coordinator for ChristianWeek and directs the work
of New Covenant House at the Toronto Jewish Mission.
