‘Passion’ sparks book sales
Lawrence retailers report rise in sales of religious items
Mel Gibson isn’t the only one making a mint off the movie “The Passion of the Christ.”
So is the religious book publishing industry.
Simple anticipation of the movie’s release early this year was enough to boost industry sales more than 50 percent in 2003, the biggest jump of any group in the publishing industry, according to the Association of American Publishers.
The numbers have several Lawrence booksellers looking forward to a renaissance in religious book sales.
“I think this is a beginning of a trend,” said Michael Martell, owner of Lumena Books, 2201 W. 25th St. “Who knows, maybe Gibson will do some sort of prequel or a sequel. There’s definitely a lot of material there.
“I think for some people it will be a life-changing experience to see this film. They’ll be looking for more movies like it, more books about it, for quite some time.”
Increasing faith
In 2002, sales totals fell 3.3 percent, to about $840 million, according to the publishers association. In 2003, sales increased by 50.2 percent, to $1.2 billion.
The increase is thanks, in part, to Gibson’s movie, which is a graphic portrayal of the crucifixion. The movie hit theaters in February, but a lot of publicity for the movie helped spur book sales in 2003.
Another reason for the increase is the book “The Da Vinci Code,” said Lisa Bakke, general manager of Borders Books, Music & Cafe, 700 N.H.
The historical thriller by Dan Brown, which has sold 6 million copies, isn’t counted in the religious book category, but has spurred interest in religious books because the plot claims Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married.
For example, Brown has said he used the book “Holy Blood, Holy Grail” as an inspiration for his work on “The Da Vinci Code.” “Holy Blood, Holy Grail,” first published in 1982, has made a strong comeback based on the connection and has spent more than four months on The New York Times’ best-seller list for nonfiction paperbacks.
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6News video: KU students sponsor Easter egg hunt (4-9-04)Similar book sales have been spawned by “The Passion.” Gibson has cited “The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ,” as a source for his movie. The publicity has driven sales of that book from 2,000 copies in 2002 to 17,000 in February alone.
Lawrence sales
Determining how much the movie has sparked sales of religious literature in Lawrence has been difficult.
“I don’t know exactly how to quantify it, but I know sales have increased for sure,” said Martell, whose Lumena Books has been open since 1999.
Martell said he thought the movie touched on a variety of emotions that have caused people to buy books and other materials related to Jesus.
“When people see the movie, they wake up to something,” Martell said. “There is a trigger of some kind that finally gets touched off. For some people it is curiosity. For some people it is being deeply moved.
“For some people, I think it triggers a little bit of guilt that they haven’t been paying enough attention to what they should.”
Despite the increased interest, Martell estimated that his sales have been boosted by less than 10 percent.
Signs of Life, a downtown book and art gallery that has a large religion section, also has seen sales jump because of interest in the movie, said Clay Belcher, owner. But he was unable to put a percentage on the increase.
“I can tell you that we’ve definitely seen quite a bit of interest in books that tie in to the movie,” Belcher said.
Though he is a fan of the movie, Belcher said it could leave unanswered questions that might lead moviegoers to stores like his.
“You can see the movie and think that it is moving and interesting, but not know why Christ suffered and died,” Belcher said. “There are a lot of people who want to know why, and we have books here that tell you that.”
Bakke, at Borders, said several religious or faith-oriented books have done well at the Lawrence store, but books related to Gibson’s movie had not produced blockbuster sales.
“I would say there is definitely an increased interest in the subject, but I’m not sure it is all driven by the movie,” Bakke said.
Belcher said he wasn’t sure the increased interest has been due to the movie and recent publicity about religious issues. He said he thought there had been a gradual move towards more interest in faith as part of our “post-modern mentality.”
“There has been a rejection of absolute truth, but at the same time an increased interest in the meaning of truth,” Belcher said. “It is a bit of a paradox.”
Future riches?
Not everyone in the book industry is a fan of “The Passion.”
Pat Kehde, co-owner of The Raven Bookstore, 8 E. Seventh St., said she hadn’t noticed any increase in business related to the movie. She also said she hoped Gibson’s movie wasn’t a sign of what was to come in the world of movies and books.
“I hope there are no more movies like this one,” Kehde said. “I saw a 30-second cut of the movie and it was totally, vulgarly violent. I just thought it wasn’t appropriate.”
Belcher
The movie also has drawn protest from groups who say its story could encourage anti-Semitism.
But the financial success of the movie — it has garnered more than $400 million in box office sales — likely will have Hollywood striving to make more movies like it, Belcher said.
“I suspect people will take a look at the box office sales and ask how they can get in on that,” Belcher said.
Martell said that, too, could produce some long-term benefits for the religious book industry.
“This business will always have its ups and downs, but what I think we might see is a gradual trend where the ups will stay up for longer periods of times and the downs won’t be down as long,” he said.
Martell said he hoped the new interest would help his store turn its first annual profit. But if it doesn’t, he said he wouldn’t be too concerned. Like many in the industry, he said, his main goal was to spread the holy word.
“I’m more interested in getting to heaven than getting rich,” Martell said.
– The Associated Press contributed information to this report.