(Zondervan) climbed back to the top of charts this week after a 26-year-old Atlanta woman read passages to a gunman who held her hostage at the end of a manhunt.

Rick Warren's book went from No. 79 Sunday night on Amazon.com's best-seller list to No. 2 by Thursday. It also was No. 2 at Barnes & Noble's Web site.

The sales spiked after a Sunday news conference with Ashley Smith, who was held hostage in her apartment by Brian Nichols, the suspect now facing charges in the shooting death of a judge and three other persons at an Atlanta courthouse. Nichols surrendered on Sunday.

Smith has described how she read Chapter 33 of the book, which is about how “real servants act.” Her actions have created a flurry of media attention; she was featured last night in a CNN news special.

In a new release, Warren said he was “thankful that Ms. Smith was able to draw from the Scriptures and her reading from The Purpose-Driven Life to bring some hope to her captor's life that was unraveling so tragically and dramatically.”

A Marietta, Ga., bookstore manager believes Nichols has received a copy of the book to read in jail. “The official chaplain of the Fulton County Jail came in to pick up the book for Brian Nichols because he requested it,” said Bob Camp, manager of Sweet Spirit Stores. “Other than that, we haven't noticed a spike in sales of the book because we sell so many of them anyway.”

A full story will appear in the April 18 issue of Christian Retailing.

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