Religious book sales in June 2015 rose 12 percent relative to June 2014, but overall year-to-date sales still trailed 2014 by more than 5 percent, according to statistics from the Association of American Publishers (AAP). Overall, publishers’ book sales for the first half of the year (January-June 2015) were down 4.1 percent at $5.58 billion, compared to $5.82 billion for the first six months in 2014.

Compared to June 2014, June 2015 demonstrated increased sales of religious hardbacks (20.2 percent), paperbacks (1.7 percent) and “other” books (33.4 percent). Religious e-book sales notably declined during this month, posting a 20.8 year-over-year decline.

In year-to-date sales, religious e-book sales fare little better, posting a 6.9 percent decrease. Religious paperbacks are the only category performing better in 2015 than 2014 (15.1 percent increase). Both religious hardbacks (9.7 percent) and “others” (4.4 percent) declined.

Total book sales in June 2015 are down 1.4 percent relative to June 2014. In June 2015, professional books showed the highest growth rate (28.1 percent), while sales of K-12 instructional materials decreased by 17.2 percent.

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