The plus-sized World War II biography of German pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer made Barnes & Noble’s Best of 2010 Books. Eric Metaxas’ Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy (Thomas Nelson) was named among 25 titles of B&N’s Best Nonfiction Books. At more than 600 pages and nearly $30 retail, Bonhoeffer has seen unanticipated strong sales and rave reviews since its April 2010 release.   

MercyMe won the Contemporary Inspirational Favorite Artist category of the 38th annual American Music Awards (AMA), held Nov. 21 in Los Angeles. MercyMe, which also won the award in 2004, was chosen over Casting Crowns and TobyMac. For the fourth year, AMA winners were determined by online voting.   ?

Multi-platinum artists Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith were to kick off a multi-city tour this month that reunited the two iconic singer-songwriters for the first time on the road in more than two decades. The 2 Friends Tour was slated to hit approximately 20 cities across the country, including Chicago; Omaha, Neb.; Minneapolis; and Cleveland. The two, who have won nine GRAMMY Awards combined and sold more than 47 million albums, first toured together in 1982 on Grant’s Age to Age Tour.   ?

Inspirational gift pioneer Bob Siemon saw a good response to a new Seasonal Sales Program introduced as his company marked its 40th anniversary last year. Around 175 items from Bob Siemon Designs’ (BSD) inventory were discounted 60%-97% for the Back to School promotion offered to stores in August. A second Christmas discount offer gave minimum savings of 80% on around 150 items, with an Easter, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day and graduation promotion due this month. As part of the sales program, BSD opened a warehouse showroom at its Santa Ana, Calif., headquarters, which marked a Grand Opening in November.

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