Global information company The NPD Group is reporting a 1% decline in 2013 US retail dollar sales of toys when compared to 2012.

Retail sales appear to have been impacted by 2013’s shorter holiday shopping season. While the weeks of Black Friday and Cyber Monday saw respective sales increases of 4% and 24% compared to the same time periods in 2012, the remaining weeks experienced softer sales versus 2012. Fourth-quarter sales were down 1%.

Michael Sweet, frontman for the multi-Platinum rock band Stryper, will release a new full-length solo album, I’m Not Your Suicide, and his autobiography, Honestly: My Life and Stryper Revealed, both through BIG3 Records.

The self-produced I’m Not Your Suicide will include guest appearances from Kevin Max and Stryper bandmates Robert Sweet and Timothy Gaines, among others.

The Green Prince, a feature-length documentary based on Mosab Hassan Yousef’s international best-selling book, Son of Hamas (Tyndale House Publishers), received the Audience Award for World Cinema Documentary at the Sundance Film Festival. Founded by actor Robert Redford, the acclaimed festival was held in Park City, Utah, Jan. 16-26.

Produced and directed by Nadav Schirman and narrated by Yousef, a Palestinian, and Gonen Ben-Itzhak, son of a retired Israel Defense Forces general, the film tells the true story of Yousef, the eldest son of one of the founders of Hamas, who, in addition to converting from Islam to Christianity, worked for a decade as a double agent for Shin Bet, the Israeli secret police.

Flight to Heaven by Captain Dale Black (Bethany House/Baker Publishing Group) took the No. 25 slot in E-Book Nonfiction for the Feb. 2 edition of the New York Times best-seller list. The list reflects sales for the week ending Jan. 18.

Originally published in 2010, the book recounts Black’s near-death experience following an airplane crash that claimed the lives of the two other pilots on board. Black, who was 19 at the time, said he had an experience of heaven during the three days he was in a coma following the crash. After recovering from his injuries, he became a professional pilot, airline pilot instructor and jet flight examiner, all while keeping silent about the experience that changed his life until writing Flight to Heaven.

A Dallas-area LifeWay store is moving, while Family Christian Stores is closing one of its locations.

The Hurst, Texas, LifeWay Christian Stores location is moving. The store is “right-sizing” its sales floor and is moving "across two parking lots to a storefront," LifeWay’s retail team told Christian Retailing.

The new LifeWay location is next to Ulta at The Shops at North East Mall, 820 N.E. Mall Blvd.

Another chain, Family Christian Stores, is closing its Owensboro, Ky., location Tuesday, Jan. 28, according to the Messenger-Inquirer. The newspaper did not cite a reason for the closure.

Mandisa and Tye Tribbett went home with a pair of awards each from the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards held Sunday evening, Jan. 27 in Los Angeles. The awards are the first GRAMMYs won by either artist, though each has received nominations in previous years.

Mandisa’s Overcomer (Sparrow Records/Capitol Christian Distribution) won Best Contemporary Christian Music Album, while the titular single from the album took home the prize for Best Contemporary Christian Music Song. Mandisa was inspired by Good Morning America host Robin Roberts’ health battle in writing the song.

JESUS, the most watched film in history, has been remastered in high definition with a complete new musical score in Dolby 5.1 surround sound. Released 35 years ago, the film has been viewed billions of times.

Retitled The JESUS Film, the classic account of Jesus’ life will have select theatrical showings around the nation beginning in March. Additionally, partnering with Cinedigm and Mission Home Video, the high-definition film will be available in Blu-ray, DVD and digital formats in retail and online April 1.