Zondervan’s NIV Bibles top e-book charts, while NavPress’ ‘Pink Edition’ sees third print run

Leading publishers have reported positive response regarding digital Bibles as well as new Bible campaigns and products.

New International Version (NIV) Bibles have been among the fastest-selling e-book products on Apple’s iBookstore and Amazon’s Kindle Store, Zondervan officials said. Amazon announced in July that it was now selling more e-books than hardcovers.

Meanwhile, NavPress’ The Message Remix Solo: Pink Edition—a Christian retail channel exclusive Bible offering encouragement to women with breast cancer—has had three print runs, while selling more than 20,000 copies.

Since the beginning of 2010, the NIV Bible and NIV Study Bible have been among the top five e-books in the Religion & Spirituality category of the two online e-book stores.

“A growing number of consumers are adopting the e-reader format, whether it’s the Amazon Kindle, the Apple iPad, Barnes & Noble Nook or Sony Reader,” said Chip Brown, senior vice president and publisher for Bibles at Zondervan. “Many of these consumers are purchasing an e-Bible so they can have the Word of God in an easy-to-use digital format. We’re encouraged by the success of our e-Bibles to date, and remain committed to offering consumers the content and features they want in the format they desire.”

E-Bibles now represent more than 40% of the company’s e-book revenues, and in several instances they have outsold some traditional hardcover Bible products, Zondervan officials said. From mid-May to mid-June, the NIV Study Bible for Kindle sold more units on Amazon.com than the hardcover edition.

The first publisher to have Bibles available in the iBookstore with the launch of the iPad, Zondervan has published more than 15 Bible titles for e-book readers and currently has 1,450 books and Bibles available in the e-book format across the various platforms.

At the end of May, the Association of American Publishers reported that in the first quarter of 2010, overall e-book sales showed a year-over-year increase of more than 250%.

Meanwhile, NavPress has donated more than $20,000 to breast cancer research—a portion of profits from The Message Remix Solo: Pink Edition, company officials said. The pink-accented Bible with The Message text—which retails for $17.99—released last September to coincide with October’s National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

NavPress is releasing The Message: Solo New Testament Pink edition this fall. NavPress officials said the company has received numerous accounts of how The Message Remix Solo: Pink Edition has offered hope not only to those facing breast cancer, but also for their families and friends.

“We are very excited about the impact that our Pink Solo campaign has had not only in the lives of those who received this devotional, but also with the contribution we have been able to make to the National Breast Cancer Foundation,” said Jill Johnson, associate Bible publisher at NavPress.

Elsewhere, David C. Cook’s The Action Bible was showcased at the San Diego Comic-Con International in July in San Diego, which drew more than 125,000 pop-culture fanatics of film, television, comic books and video games.

Sergio Cariello, a well-known Brazilian-American artist who has drawn Spider-Man for DC Comics and Superman and Batman for Marvel Comics, worked for three years on illustrations for The Action Bible—a 752-page updating of the publisher’s successful Picture Bible.

“It is a privilege and the honor of a lifetime for a Christian cartoonist to get to draw and bring to life God’s own stories,” Cariello said.

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