Christianaudio.com has added a general-interest imprint to its audio library. Though Mission Audio was launched to reach other markets, many of the titles could be of interest to Christian stores, said Todd Hoyt, company co-founder and director of sales and marketing.

Among the 40-plus titles included in the first Mission Audio catalog are Mother Teresa: In Her Own Words by Father Angelo Scolozzi and The Pope's Maestro by Sir Gilbert Levine.

Others include classics such as Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and several titles from the "McGuffey's Eclectic Readers" series. Retail prices range from $5.98 for a four-CD set to $39.98 for an 18-CD recording.

The move follows requests for audiobooks outside the Christian market that were still "thoughtful," Hoyt said, with homeschooling, politics and business among the areas of interest. "We have been very encouraged with the response thus far," he added.

Launched six years ago as Hovel Audio and later rebranded as Christianaudio.com, the Escondido, Calif.-based business has around 550 titles in its Christian library, adding around 100 each year. Hoyt said that though digital sales had been increasing, physical sales remained good at stores that invested in the audio category.

"Some stores have been really strong and aggressive in promoting audio," though smaller stores may not be able to stock at the depth needed. Audiobook buyers "want to go in and see some inventory," he said. "They tend to be very loyal and tend to buy a lot of product, so for smaller stores that may only have 40-50 books, it is harder for them to compete."

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