Sarah Young’s devotional Jesus Calling occupies the top spot on the weekly general best-sellers list from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association, but a new title has shown up close behind at No. 2, That’s Why I’m Here, the memoir of Ohio State football legend ESPN college football analyst Chris Spielman and his late wife, Stefanie. The list tracks sales for the week ending May 5, according to Pubtrack Christian data.

Harvest House Publishers has introduced its newly revised corporate logo. Borrowing from its predecessor—a classic capital H and triple-grain wheat graphic—the new logo retains the H and three grains of wheat, yet has a simpler, cleaner look.

“The core elements of our classic logo are still present, but we now have an instantly recognizable, contemporary icon that achieves a greater level of brand recognition and carries far more practical use for digital and other corporate applications,” said Bryce Williamson, the company’s interactive media and design manager and the logo’s designer.

Bob Hawkins Jr., president of Harvest House, which publishes more than 180 books a year, is pleased with the change. “The updated version is representative of our many initiatives currently unfolding at Harvest House and is truly symbolic of our commitment to move forward, embrace the changing needs of our industry and remain innovative,” he said.

The updated logo will appear on the company’s frontlist product and backlist product as books are reprinted as well as throughout the company’s various media platforms.

Faith-based publishers reported a 49.2% increase in February from religious e-books compared to the same month last year, according to the latest figures available from the Association of American Publishers (AAP). The category also saw a rise of 86.5% for the year to date versus January-February 2011.

Religious hardcover sales were up 12.4% in February over the same month the previous year to more than $30 million, while religious paperback sales were down more than 23% for the same period, totaling $12.4 million. Overall, book sales from religious presses saw a 3.5% rise to $52.3 million.

New York Times best-selling author Max Lucado has signed a new three-book contract with his longtime publisher, Thomas Nelson. The three trade books will release in the next five years, the first in fall 2013.

The contract also allows Thomas Nelson to publish ancillary products based on the content of the upcoming titles, which will likely be for the children’s, gift and curriculum groups within the company to release simultaneously with each respective trade book.

Spanish-language Christian trade show Expolit 2012, being held May 3-8 at the Doubletree Hotel & Miami Airport Convention Center in Miami, is reporting a rise in attendance of 20%.

The city of Miami also presented an award to Expolit Executive Director David Ecklebarger for choosing to hold the show in Miami for 20 years.

Casa Creacion also celebrated 15 years in business, and the oldest bookstore in Latin America was honored for a century of operation.

by Steve Strang, owner and CEO, Charisma Media

During a time of enormous change in the media world, one segment of the Christian publishing industry seems alive and well: the Spanish publishing market.

At least that’s my impression after returning from Expolit, held for the past 20 years in Miami where attendance was up 20% this year over last. For me, it was great to celebrate the 15th anniversary of our Casa Creación book imprint with a special service featuring Iris Delgado, author of Satan, You Can’t Have My Marriage. Her book in English, Satan, You Can’t Have My Children, was originally published in Spanish. The English version has taken off and sold more than 100,000 copies in less than a year. It’s an indication to me that the Spanish segment of the church is more and more influencing the wider church. Read our news story here about Expolit.

Messianic rabbi Jonathan Cahn’s prophetic novel, The Harbinger, has once again topped the weekly fiction best-sellers list. The list from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association tracks sales for the week ending April 28, according to Pubtrack Christian data.

The Top 20 General best-sellers are: 1. Jesus Calling, Young, hardcover (Thomas Nelson); 2. Indivisible, James Robison, Jay W. Richards (WaterBrook Press); 3. Jesus Calling: Deluxe Edition, Young (Thomas Nelson); 4. Heaven Is for Real, Todd Burpo (Thomas Nelson); 5. The Harbinger, Jonathan Cahn (FrontLine/Charisma House Book Group); 6. Dear Jesus, Young, hardcover (Thomas Nelson); 7. One Thousand Gifts, Ann Voskamp (Zondervan); 8. The Fiddler, “Home to Hickory Hollow,” No. 1, Lewis (Bethany House/Baker Publishing Group); 9. The 5 Love Languages, Gary Chapman (Northfield Publishing); 10. Jesus Calling: Large Print Deluxe Edition, Young (Thomas Nelson); 11. Not a Fan, Kyle Idleman (Zondervan); 12. Crazy Love, Francis Chan (David C Cook); 13. S.H.A.P.E., Erik Rees (Zondervan); 14. The Resolution for Men, Stephen Kendrick, Alex Kendrick, Randy Alcorn (B&H Books); 15. Battlefield of the Mind, Joyce Meyer (FaithWords); 16. Bonhoeffer, Eric Metaxas (Thomas Nelson); 17. The Necessity of an Enemy, Ron Carpenter (WaterBrook Press); 18. Loving, “Bailey Flanigan Series,” No. 4, Karen Kingsbury (Zondervan); 19. Kingdom Man, Tony Evans (Tyndale House Publishers); and 20. Made to Crave Devotional, Lysa TerKeurst (Zondervan).