Thread: Wholesale Reformed / Puritan Books?

Over the past year or two I have done my fair share of book buying and in my experiences, I have found that most of the "stores" I buy from aren't very cheap. I know many show discounts, but overall I feel like it is a bit less than I would pay walking in to a Barnes & Noble or something. I have shopped at monergism.com, cvbbs.com, christianbook.com, wtsbooks.com, heritagebooks.org, reformationbookstore.com, sgpbooks.com and others. This has got me thinking if there is a possible need for a book publication / distribution ministry where prices are much more affordable (even if limited to paperbacks) and even offered for free to those that cannot afford them.

I wanted to ask a few questions centered around my thoughts and I would love any feedback you might have.

1. Are there any ministry / non-profit reform book sellers out there?

2. Can old works from the 16-19th centuries be republished by anyone?

3. Is there any ministry that tries to get reformed literature in to the hands of ministers for free or VERY low cost?

4. Is there any ministry that tries to get reformed literature translated in to other languages for ministers in non English speaking countries?

Any insight would be helpful and appreciated.

Look on google books. They have many old reformed books, for free.

Yes, certainly they do. But I am trying to consider the books in print side of things.

One answer to your questions:

Chapel Library - Literature

They reprint at low cost and work to translate a lot of material, mostly in Spanish, but other languages as well.

There are certainly other organizations, such as the Puritan Project in Brazil and the Reformation Translation Society in Taiwan. Those are the main ones that come to mind. But then, I don't get out much.

Near where I live in London, there is a place called BookAid, and it offers Christian literature (including reformed) for wholesale prices.. and the profits go to good causes.

Originally Posted by LeeD

3. Is there any ministry that tries to get reformed literature in to the hands of ministers for free or VERY low cost?

4. Is there any ministry that tries to get reformed literature translated in to other languages for ministers in non English speaking countries?

Third Millenium Ministries (Richard Pratt) translates seminary material for free in a number of languages.

Mostly Reformed stuff.

Any bookstores like I have mentioned? Can old works from the 16-19th centuries be republished by anyone?

I am not sure why you would want to print the old public domain stuff when it can be downloaded for palm, logos, pdf and many other formats for free.

Originally Posted by LeeD

Any bookstores like I have mentioned? Can old works from the 16-19th centuries be republished by anyone?

Originally Posted by Bookmeister

I am not sure why you would want to print the old public domain stuff when it can be downloaded for palm, logos, pdf and many other formats for free.

All the reformed classics should be republished and I for one hate reading books off a screen. Nothing like the warm comfortable feel of a good book and I am willing to pay$$$ for the priviledge.

Drive up to Dallas some weekend and hit a couple of the Half Price Books stores - main one on Northwest Hwy just east of Central should be the first stop; for a second location either Belt Line west of Central in Richardson, or Preston just north of LBJ, and see what they have. You'll have to dig through piles of dipsy and seeker sensitive, of course.

If you spend the night, Sunday stop by Park Cities Presbyterian for church and hit the bookstore there - a good selection of Puritan works and other Reformed books at prices that are hard to beat.

Originally Posted by Bookmeister

I am not sure why you would want to print the old public domain stuff when it can be downloaded for palm, logos, pdf and many other formats for free.

Because books are wanted and needed.

I am quite a fan of physical books too. I'm afraid I can't name anywhere that sells cheap Reformed books, but since they should be in the Public Domain, I do believe they can be republished on Lulu.com. Lulu is a website for free book publishing, among other things. It also allows you to determine the price of a book you sell, the absolute minimum being enough to cover printing costs. One could probably republish a number of works on there at minimal cost, and also make them available to the public.

Using a calculator in Lulu's help page, I calculated a 400 page paperback on standard paper to cost around $12.50 USD to print, so the prices aren't too bad.

Formatting a book for printing on Lulu might require some hard work. At these prices, is it worth it?

Try this one:

IP/CMR Home Page

and this one:

Reformed Free Publishing Association

Solid Ground Christian Books down in Alabama does a lot of re-prints. The link is to the bookstore but there is also a publishing company. If you call, ask for Michael Kaddish and he might be able to answer your questions. I always stop by on my business trips to Birmingham.