(Nashville, Tenn.) Thomas Nelson, Inc. was awarded six of Christian Retailing’s 2009 Retailer’s Choice Awards. The awards were announced on Monday, July 13th at the International Christian Retail Show in Denver, Colorado. Thomas Nelson received more any other publishing house and walked away with a fifth of the cumulative awards.

“There are two things about Retailer’s Choice Awards that make them among the highest honors in the industry,” said Michael S. Hyatt, CEO of Thomas Nelson. “First, the awards are selected by Christian retailers, who work on the front lines helping Christians strengthen their spiritual journey. Second, the awards are judged on a product’s ability to inspire, encourage, and affirm Godly living. I am so proud of our team.”

The Thomas Nelson winners are:

• The Word of Promise Next Generation: New Testament Audio Bible (Audio)
• Baby’s First Bible (Bibles: General)
• What in the World Is Going On? by David Jeremiah (Bibles - General)
• Fireproof by Eric Wilson (Fiction: General)
• Looking Up When Life Is Looking Down by Beth Moore (Gift Books)
• Chronological Study Bible Campaign (Marketing/Promotion Campaign)

Products nominated for the 2009 Retailer’s Choice Awards must include clear Christian content, message or worldview. Retailers judged the 250 nominations in 30 categories on the impact they have had on staff and customers, including their ability to speak to people’s hearts and evoke emotion, open people’s minds to new ways of thinking, and encourage and affirm Christ-like living. For more a complete listing of the 2009 Retailer’s Choice Awards, visit www.retailerschoiceawards.com.

Thomas Nelson is a leading provider of Bibles, products, and live events emphasizing Christian, inspirational and family value themes.  For more information, visit our website www.thomasnelson.com.

Contact:    Lindsey Nobles
Director of Corporate Communications   

tel:    (615) 902-1109    

fax:  (615) 902-1110
cell:  (615) 476-5984    

e-mail:  lnobles@thomasnelson.com

“The move to Thomas Nelson is a major strategic decision for MBI and one that we are confident will enable the next phase of exciting growth for the company,” said Mike Park, Commercial Director of MBI.  “We have already built up an excellent working relationship with Thomas Nelson which bodes fantastically well for a mutually successful future.  We are very excited and can feel that excitement reflected throughout Thomas Nelson.”

“We are thrilled to begin distributing MBI’s product domestically,” agreed Tod Shuttleworth, Senior Vice President of Specialty and Global Publishing at Thomas Nelson. “Their innovative products will be a wonderful compliment to our existing children’s line. I believe that together, we can grow MBI’s presence throughout the United States.”

About Thomas Nelson
Thomas Nelson is a leading provider of Bibles, products, and live events emphasizing Christian, inspirational and family value themes.  For more information, visit our website www.thomasnelson.com.

About Make Believe Ideas
Make Believe Ideas is a publisher of innovative books for children and babies. Beautifully designed and featuring a range of stimulating novelties, our books encourage creativity and promote learning. For more information, visit our website www.makebelieveideas.com.

Contact: Lindsey Nobles
Thomas Nelson
(615) 902-1109 o
(615) 476-5984 c
lnobles@thomasnelson.com

(Nashville, Tenn.) Thomas Nelson, Inc. announced today that thirteen of its products or campaigns have been chosen to be finalists for Christian Retailing’s 2009 Retailer’s Choice Awards. Products or campaigns nominated for the 2009 Retailer’s Choice Awards must include clear Christian content, message, or worldview. Retailers judge nominations on the impact they have had on staff and customers, including their ability to speak to people’s hearts and evoke emotion, open people’s minds to new ways of thinking, and encourage and affirm Christlike living.

The winner in each category will be announced on Monday, July 13, during the International Christian Retail Show in Denver, Colorado. Winners will appear in the August 10 issue of Christian Retailing. The Thomas Nelson finalists are:

The Word of Promise Next Generation, New Testament - Audio
Chronological Study Bible - Bibles (Devotional/Study)
Baby’s First Bible - Bibles (General)
The Voice, New Testament - Bibles (General)

Sweet Dreams Princess by Sheila Walsh - Children’s Non-Fiction

What in the World Is Going On? by David Jeremiah - Church and Culture

Fireproof by Eric Wilson - Fiction (General)

Sinner: A Paradise Novel by Ted Dekker - Fiction (Mystery and Suspence)

Walking with God by John Eldredge - Personal Growth/Prayer

A Baby Changes Everything by Tim Nichols, K.K. Wiseman, and Craig Wiseman - Gift Books

Looking Up When Life is Looking Down by Beth Moore - Gift Books

Same Kind of Different As Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore - Backlist

Chronological Study Bible Campaign - Marketing/Promotion Campaign

Thomas Nelson is a leading provider of Bibles, products, and live events emphasizing Christian, inspirational and family value themes.  For more information, visit our website www.thomasnelson.com.

Contact:    Lindsey Nobles
Director of Corporate Communications
tel:    (615) 902-1109
fax:  (615) 902-1110
cell:  (615) 476-5984
e-mail:  lnobles@thomasnelson.com

John Kirby, Director of The Word of Promise Next Generation, expresses the pride of everyone who worked on the project: “What an honor to have won this prestigious award and to have been surrounded by such inspiring nominees who are heroes of mine,” he says.

It is no surprise that this star-studded cast of voices captures the attention of both Audies® judges and the young people of their generation.  Stars like Cody Linley and Emily Osment of “Hannah Montana,” Corbin Bleu of “High School Musical,” American Idol’s Jordin Sparks, Sean Astin of “The Lord of the Rings,” and rising star Anna Sophia Robb are just a handful of the talented young people bringing the Bible to life for teen and tween listeners.

The Word of Promise® Next Generation was born out of a startling realization: a whole generation is missing the truths of the Bible.  According to a Barna survey of professing Christians, many young Christians today don’t believe in some of the very foundations of the faith—Satan is real, Jesus was sinless, and the Bible is all true.  On top of that, the study also found 43% of Christians who accept Jesus as their Savior do so before reaching the age of 13, and 64% before turning 18.  It seems today’s youth just won’t read the Bible, but Thomas Nelson hopes and believes they will listen.

“This award belongs to so many talented people,” says Carl Amari, Producer of the project. “I am personally humbled and thankful for the opportunity to produce a project that has the power to speak truth into young lives. I am thankful to the Audio Publishers Association, but more importantly to our Lord, for trusting me and my team with His Word and allowing us to be used to further the kingdom.”

The ICB (International Children’s Bible) New Testament, the bestselling and most readable translation created especially for today’s youth, comes to life in The Word of Promise® Next Generation as a full audio dramatic presentation.  The words leap off the page with incredible sound effects, a compelling new contemporary musical score, all produced in dramatic audio theater.  The same high quality Bible experience is available in a 21-hour, 20 CD set as well as a MP3 format so that youth can download it onto their music players to listen on-the-go.  Now, the same great content is also available in MP3 on a reusable USB flash drive bracelet for even the most tech-savvy young listeners.

In September, Thomas Nelson will unveil the complete cover-to-cover Dramatic Audio Theater™ adult production of the NKJV Bible when The Word of Promise® Old Testament Audio Bible and The Word of Promise® Audio Bible are released.  The Word of Promise® Audio Bible features a star-studded cast, including Jim Caviezel as Jesus, Richard Dreyfuss as Moses, and Lou Gossett, Jr. as John.

The Audies® Awards recognize distinction in audiobooks and spoken word entertainment.  The Audies® are sponsored by The Audio Publishers Association (APA), a not-for-profit trade organization whose primary goals are to promote awareness of the audiobook industry, gather and disseminate industry statistics, encourage high production standards and represent the interests of audiobook publishers.  Since 1986, the APA has worked to bring audio publishers together to increase interest in audiobooks. Please visit www.audiopub.org for more information.

Contact:    Abby Barnhart
Publicist
Tel:    (615) 902-2932
Email: abarnhart@thomasnelson.com

(Nashville, Tenn.) In every way, nine-year-old Austin Gutwein was a typical little boy who could often be found shooting hoops in his backyard in Phoenix, Arizona. That is until he had his “Maggie moment” in 2004.  After that, everything changed for him and more importantly, for the lives of children halfway across the world.

Austin was captivated by a video that told the story of a little girl named Maggie.  Maggie lived in Zambia in Southern Africa.  She lost almost everyone she loved to AIDS, an epidemic that ravaged the country and deprived it of an entire generation, leaving nearly a million children orphaned.  

“As I watched I just kept thinking about what it would be like if I lost my parents…I finally asked myself: What if this was me?” Austin writes.

Austin was changed forever, and he decided to do something about it.  He used something he loved: basketball.  His organization Hoops of Hope was born.

“You don’t have to be extraordinary; you just have to be willing,” Austin writes.  “My God is David’s God.  If David used a slingshot, couldn’t I use a basketball?”

Take Your Best Shot (ISBN: 9781400315154, $12.99, September 2009) captures Austin’s amazing adventure, one that has taken him to Rwanda, Zambia, Uganda, China, Europe, the Middle East and back in his short 15 years.  However, Austin is not interested in just his story but the reader’s as well! Through his book, Austin challenges readers to go on an adventure of their own and to take their best shot while highlighting others around the world who are making a difference.

“God wants us to make a difference in our world that is going to last; he wants to use us to make a difference to real people who are in real need, right now,” Austin writes.  “That’s what drives us on in the journey to do something bigger than ourselves.”

Today, thousands of kids and adults around the world join Austin to raise money for orphans in Zambia, Africa with over 230 events worldwide last year.  To this date, Austin’s organization Hoops of Hope has raised over a million dollars and joined with world relief organizations such as World Vision to build a high school and medical clinic in Zambia through their shoot-a-thons.  The story of Hoops of Hope has been seen nationally on CBS Sports before the 2008 NCAA Final Four tipoff, the Today Show and CBS Evening News with Katie Couric.

Through this book, Austin hopes readers learn that no matter where you are, no matter what your skills are, no matter what your age is, you can make a difference and that with God, all things are possible.

Austin Gutwein was moved when he learned there were more than 15 million children orphaned by HIV/AIDS.  He organized a free-throw marathon and now his organization, Hoops of Hope, has raised over a million dollars to build a high school and medical clinic in Zambia.  Austin has shared his story with over 200,000 people worldwide and as a speaker on the Revolve Tour, Austin speaks to 125,000 teenage girls each year.  Austin lives with his family in Phoenix, Arizona.
Todd Hillard is a free-lance writer and is passionate about taking the dreams and stories of others and bringing them to life on the written page.  He has 17 years of pastoral experience and has written more than 12 books. Also check out Hoops of Hope at www.HoopsofHope.org

Contact:    Jacklyn Johnston
Publicist
Tel:    (615) 902-1722
Email: jjohnston@thomasnelson.com

(Nashville, TN) The team, under the leadership of Laura Minchew and Dan Lynch, has recently been recognized for several major awards including seven Mom’s Choice Awards, three Family Choice Awards, one Moonbeam Children’s Book Award, and has two ECPA Christian Book Awards finalists as well as two finalists in the Audies.  

Seven Thomas Nelson children’s books were recently named recipients of the highly sought after 2009 Mom’s Choice Awards®, a premier award recognizing and honoring excellence in family-friendly products. An esteemed panel of judges including Dr. Twila C. Liggett (founder of Reading Rainbow), Julie Aigner-Clark (creator of Baby Einstein), parents, children, authors, and experts from many fields chose these 6 books as worthy of the coveted Mom’s Choice Awards® Gold Seal: Passport Into the WildRomp, Stomp, Waddle Home! and by Jack Hanna, My Little Girl by Tim McGraw and Tom Douglas, The Moon Shines Down by Margaret Wise Brown, I Love You More Than Rainbows by Susan E. Crites, and Nana’s Bible Stories by Roberta Simpson. Isle of Swords by Wayne Thomas Batson was chosen to receive the Silver Seal.

Three of these MCA winners were also honored with the 2008 Family Choice Award given by the Family Magazine Group honoring the best family products on the market today.  Out of over 15,000 entries Passport Into the Wild, My Little Girl and Moon Shines Down were chosen as favorites in the book category.

The Christian Book Awards are selected by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) based on excellence in content, literary quality, design, and significance of contribution. These two titles nominated are now finalists in the Children & Youth category are Guys Like Girls Who… by Chad Eastham and Secrets Young Women Keep by Dr. Jill Hubbard and Ginny McCabe.

The Audies®, sponsored by the Audio Publishers Association (APA), is the premier awards program in the United States recognizing distinction in audiobooks and spoken word entertainment. The Word of Promise®: Next Generation-New Testament, featuring many young Hollywood stars and narrated by Sean Astin is a finalist in two categories: Inspirational/Faith-Based Non-Fiction and Multi-Voiced Performance.    

In the Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards, Isle of Fire by Wayne Thomas Batson was selected as the 2008 Silver Medal for Young Adult Fiction. Presented by Jenkins Group and Independent Publisher Online, the Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards are designed to bring increased recognition to exemplary children’s books and their creators, and to support childhood literacy and life-long reading.

(Nashville, Tenn.) Thomas Nelson, Inc. announced today that five of their products have been chosen to be finalists for the 2009 Christian Book Awards. The Christian Book Awards are presented annually, since 1978, to the highest quality in Christian publishing in six categories - Bibles, Bible Reference & Study, Christian Life, Fiction, Children & Youth, and Inspiration & Gift. The awards are selected by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) based on excellence in content, literary quality, design, and significance of contribution.  

The winner in each category will be announced at the Christian Book Expo 2009 in Dallas, Texas. The Christian Book Awards Dinner will begin at 7 PM CST on Thursday, March 19, at the Dallas Convention Center. Tickets are $79 per person and can be reserved online at www.christianbookexpo.com/christianbookawards. In addition, one title will be selected from the finalist to receive the top honor, Christian Book of the Year. This award is based on editorial excellence and sales achievement.

The Thomas Nelson finalists are:

• NKJV Study Bible: Second Edition (Bibles)
• Less Than Dead by Tim Downs (Fiction)
• Guys Like Girls Who… by Chad Eastham (Children & Youth)
• Secrets Young Women Keep by Dr. Jill Hubbard (Children & Youth)
• Reflections of God’s Holy Land by Eva Marie Everson & Miriam Fieberg Vamosh (Inspiration & Gift)

About the Nominees:

NKJV Study Bible: Second Edition
For over a decade, Bible-readers have been discovering the wonders of the Bible using the NKJV Study Bible and the NKJV Study Bible: Second Edition, an updated and enhanced version of the beloved original, is setting the standard for study. It allows the reader to find everything needed for study in one Bible, guaranteed by trustworthy scholarship. As in the previous version, this Bible offers 1,500 verse-by-verse study notes, 69 in-text maps, 80 in-text charts, full-color maps, book outlines, timelines, a harmony of the Gospels, a topical index, and a deluxe concordance. However, the second edition boasts several new features such as a special Libronix eBible CD-ROM that offers the Bible’s contents in a convenient electronic format, as well as:
·        A complete cross reference, including translators’ notes
·        150 Bible times and culture notes
·        114 revised articles on the key doctrines of Scripture
·        350 revised word studies with Strong’s numbers
·        Book introductions with a “Christ in the Scriptures” feature showing the messianic significance of every book in the Bible

Less Than Dead by Tim Downs
Some secrets just won’t stay buried. When strange bones surface on a U.S. senator’s property, the FBI enlists forensic entomologist Nick Polchak to investigate the forgotten graveyard. Polchak’s orders are simple: figure out the mess.

But Polchak, known as the “Bug Man” because of his knowledge of insects and their interaction with the dead, senses darker secrets buried beneath the soil.

Secrets that could derail the senator’s presidential bid. Secrets buried in the history of a quaint Virginia town. Secrets someone is willing to kill to protect. With the help of a mysterious local woman named Alena and her uncanny cadaver dogs, Polchak sets out to dig up the truth. But with a desperate killer hot on his trail, he’ll be lucky to wind up anything less than dead.

Guys Like Girls Who… by Chad Eastham
Every girl has wondered how they need to act or what they need to do to get a certain boy’s attention. Now they can know!

Chad Eastham will encourage girls to be confident in who they are and Whose they are. Girls need to know that they are treasures to be adored and that how she feels about herself is how guys will treat her.

Secrets Young Women Keep by Dr. Jill Hubbard with Ginny McCabe
Reveals top secrets, practical insights, dreams, and struggles of young women.

Every young woman has a secret! In The Secrets Young Women Keep, clinical psychologist and New Life Live radio co-host, Dr. Jill Hubbard reveals the top 25 secrets kept by young women, why they keep them, and how they can live more honest, God-honoring lives. It is only through understanding faith that the tremendous power these secrets hold over precious young lives can be broken.

Reflections of God’s Holy Land: A Personal Journey Through Israel  by Eva Marie Everson and Miriam Feinberg Vamosh
This unique armchair tour of Israel which includes four-color photographs, related scriptures, historical and archaeological information about each area, and a description of what it looks and feels like to be there today. Providing more than a coffee table book of slick photographs, authors Everson and Feinberg Vamosh (one Christian from America, one Jewish from Israel) enlighten readers with a deeper understanding of the land of Israel-the land that holds not only God’s story but the story of His people.

Contact:    Lindsey Nobles
Director of Corporate Communications   

tel:    (615) 902-1109    

fax:  (615) 902-1110    

cell:  (615) 476-5984    

e-mail:  lnobles@thomasnelson.com

(Nashville, TN) Thomas Nelson is pleased to announce that Isle of Fire, a familiar face on the CBA bestseller list, is the proud recipient of the 2008 Moonbeam Award Silver Medal for Young Adult Fiction. For an award that recognizes not only the creators of exemplary children’s books but also authors who support literacy and life-long reading, there could not be a better choice.

Having witnessed firsthand the lack of quality reading material for young minds, Batson set out to develop his own teaching tools through the creation of his first published series, The Door Within; and now with his second series, Isle of Swords and Isle of Fire. Batson involved his students in the writing process, welcoming critique of his work.

In this new series, Batson weaves a spell-binding adventure filled with high-seas drama where battles rage, storms brew, a long-dormant volcano awakens, and a sea creature slithers in the deep as pirates race for a cliff-top fortress. It is a story of amazing courage that will take young readers on the ride of their lives as well as encourage and challenge them to be heroes themselves.

The bestselling Isle of Swords adventure continues in Isle of Fire as ancient mariners rise from legend and cut an all-too-real swath of destruction across the Atlantic. The newly formed Wolf Fleet scours the Caribbean, hunting the pirates they once called comrades. And in the pitiless winds of a monstrous hurricane, whole fleets will be blasted apart and devoured.

Wayne Thomas Batson is the author of the bestselling The Door Within Trilogy.  A middle school reading teacher in Maryland for 17 years, Batson tailors his stories to meet the needs of the young people he cares so deeply about.  Batson writes adventures set in imaginative locales because he believes that on a deep level, we all dream of doing something that matters and that we all long for another world.  When last seen, Batson was tromping around Westfarthing with his beautiful wife and four adventurous children.

About the Moonbeam Awards
Presented by Jenkins Group and Independent Publisher Online, the Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards are designed to bring increased recognition to exemplary children’s books and their creators, and to support childhood literacy and life-long reading. Awards are given in 30 categories covering the full range of subjects, styles and age groups that children’s books are written and published in today. For more information, visit www.moonbeamawards.com.

Contact: Jackie Johnston

Publicist

Phone: (615) 902-1722

E-mail: jjohnston@thomasnelson.com

(Nashville, Tenn.)  This Christmas, experience anew the miracle of one special baby.  “A Baby Changes Everything,” penned by renowned songwriters Tim Nichols, K.K. Wiseman and Craig Wiseman and sung by Faith Hill, tells the amazing story of a young girl, an unplanned pregnancy and one miraculous little baby.

Faith Hill’s song A Baby Changes Everything celebrates the baby in the manger in a fresh new way.  In this elegant gift book the lyrics joined by reflective stanzas on the wonder of God’s love and the Christmas season.  Through this new book and CD single included with the book, find the joy and wonder of how a baby can change our lives in an instant and how one baby changed the world forever.  This fresh retelling of the Christmas story makes for a beautiful expression of all that is wonderful about Christmas.

Faith’s Christmas album, JOY TO THE WORLD, will be released on September 30, 2008.  Visit www.faithhill.com to pre-order the album.

Tim Nichols is the writer of such hits as “Heads Carolina, Tails California,” “I’ll Think of a Reason Later,” “Girls Lie Too,” and “This Ain’t No Thinkin’ Thing.” Tim lives in Franklin, Tennessee, with his wife Patsy, and their sons, Tyler and Landon.

K.K. Wiseman received her undergraduate degree at Texas Christian University and her Master of Divinity degree at Vanderbilt University.  She is currently the retreat leader for several Nashville churches.

Craig Wiseman is the writer of the hit songs “Where the Green Grass Grows,” “The Good Stuff,” “Just Another Day in Paradise,” “The Cowboy in Me,” and many more.

Contact:    Jacklyn Johnston
Publicist
Tel: (615) 902-1722
Fax: (615) 902-2219
E-mail: jjohnston@thomasnelson.com

(Nashville, Tenn.) Thomas Nelson, Inc. was awarded nine of Christian Retailing’s 2008 Retailer’s Choice Awards. The awards were announced on Monday, July 14th at the International Christian Retail Show in Orlando, Florida. Thomas Nelson received more than twice the wins of any other publishing house and walked away with almost a third of the cumulative awards.

“There are two things about Retailer’s Choice Awards that make them among the highest honors in this industry,” said Michael S. Hyatt, President and CEO of Thomas Nelson. “First, the awards are selected by Christian retailers, who work on the front lines to help Christians strengthen their spiritual journey. Second, the awards are judged on a product’s ability to inspire, encourage, and affirm Godly living. I am so proud of the entire Thomas Nelson team.”
The Thomas Nelson winners are:

• The Word of Promise New Testament Audio Bible (Books/Bibles)
• Nelson’s Cross Reference Guide to the Bible by Jerome Smith (Bible Reference/Bible Studies)
• The Message- NKJV Parallel Bible (Bibles – General)
• 3:16 – The Numbers of Hope by Max Lucado (Christian Living)
• Get Out of That Pit: A 40-Day Devotional Journal by Beth Moore (Personal Growth/Prayer)
• A New Kind of Normal by Carol Kent (Women’s Non-Fiction)
• Chosen by Ted Dekker (Youth/Teen)
• This Christmas Night by Billy and Ruth Graham (Gift Books)
• The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything (Vacation Bible School)

Products nominated for the 2008 Retailer’s Choice Awards must have been published or released in 2007 and include clear Christian content, message or worldview. Retailers judged the 245 nominations in 31 categories on the impact they have had on staff and customers, including their ability to speak to people’s hearts and evoke emotion, open people’s minds to new ways of thinking, and encourage and affirm Christ-like living. For more a complete listing of the 2008 Retailer’s Choice Awards, visit www.retailerschoiceawards.com.

Contact: Lindsey Nobles
Director of Corporate Communications
tel: (615) 902-1109
fax: (615) 902-1110
cell: (615) 476-5984
e-mail: lnobles@thomasnelson.com