Demand for religious literature has increased in Russia for the first time since 2017 – Kommersant

The growth in demand for religious literature in the first six months of 2023 amounted to 40% in monetary terms compared to the same period a year earlier, they reported RBC in the publishing house “Eksmo-AST”. Growth in this area is recorded for the first time since 2017.

“Last year, the segment of religious literature did not show any growth either. Then, on the contrary, esotericism was in great demand, primarily everything related to Tarot cards. In our opinion, this is due to such a high degree of uncertainty in the world that people have the feeling that only the Tarot can provide answers. The turning point in the trend began only in this half of the year: people began to turn to the church,” said Evgeniy Kapyev, general director of the publishing house.

The fact that religious books have become more popular also follows from Ozon data. In a year-on-year ratio, the increase was 121%. Books on medicine are just as popular on the online platform, but the volume of demand on this topic is stable from year to year. According to the publisher, sales of books on psychology and self-development increased by 25% compared to the first six months of 2022. Demand for books on esotericism decreased to 21% versus 53% in 2022.

Alexandra Goroshilova