Christian publishers are looking for a big-selling book to help drive more traffic to Christian bookstores, according to one of the authors of a major new publishing trends report.

"Everyone seems to be waiting for another The Purpose-Driven Life or just a book that really will draw the traffic back into the Christian bookstores," said Michael Norris, a senior analyst for market research firm Simba Information.

Norris was one of the authors of the new Business of Consumer Book Publishing 2008, which examines publishing, distribution and retail trends in 19 major trade categories, including religion.

While declining to disclose details from the report, Norris told Christian Retailing that publishers looking for the next big title "really don't even care if they are the ones to publish it or not. There seems to be a big hunger for a hook book, a book that will bring people in and that's lacking in the category so far."

The religion category remained "strong," he said. It represented a microcosm of what was happening in general markets where "smaller bookstores are being squeezed especially when it comes to price, which is putting pressure on the category as whole."

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