Ann Voskamp will write a book for Tyndale due in fall 2013 to be called Jesse Tree. The Jesse Tree, a Christian symbol for the ancestry of Jesus, is often talked about during the season of Advent. Voskamp’s One Thousand Gifts (Zondervan, 2010) has been a breakout title, selling more than 400,000 copies.

Dutton released the first essay in a new e-book series by renowned pastor and bestselling author Timothy Keller on Dec. 4. The Encounters with Jesus series, published under the Redeemer imprint, will feature ten installments priced at $1.99, launching with The Skeptical Student. Keller is the pastor of New York’s Redeemer Presbyterian Church and the author of The Reason for God and the recently published Every Good Endeavor.

Eerdmans title The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Bible by James C. VanderKam has been awarded the Frank Moore Cross Award, sponsored by the American Schools of Oriental Research (ASOR). The award is given annually to the editor or author of the most substantial book related to ancient Near Eastern and eastern Mediterranean epigraphy texts and/or traditions. VanderKam received the award at ASOR’s annual meeting, Nov. 14-17 in Chicago.

Yale University Press author Leila Ahmed has won the 2013 Grawemeyer Award in Religion for her book, A Quiet Revolution: The Veil’s Resurgence from the Middle East to America (2011; paperback May 2012). Ahmed, who teaches at Harvard, explains that a growing number of Muslim women in the U.S. are wearing veils, not as a rejection of feminist ideals, but as a symbol of activism for justice, social change, and equality. The University of Louisville presents four Grawemeyer Awards each year for outstanding works in music composition, world order, psychology, and education. The university and seminary jointly give a fifth award in religion. This year’s awards are $100,000 each.

SkyLight Paths Publishing has launched Christian Journeys—a new imprint dedicated to publishing books for the progressive Christian audience. Emily Wichland, v-p of editorial and production, will head the imprint, which, she said, “gives a clear and distinctive identity to the growing body of decidedly Christian books we’re publishing.” Among Christian Journeys authors are Katharine Jefferts Schori, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, and Joan Brown Campbell, former executive director of the U.S. office of the World Council of Churches.

Our Sunday Visitor, the world’s largest English-language Catholic publisher, has created three new iPhone apps: the Saint Names for Your Baby app for expectant parents; the Confirmation Names app for young adults preparing for the sacrament of Confirmation; and the Patron Saints app. All are available for $0.99 each at the iTunes Store.

The Evangelical Christian Publishers Association has announced the winners of its annual ECPA|dp Book Cover Awards. Three design winners and three consumer research winners were chosen in three publisher categories. (Research awards recognize how designs reflect consumer profiles defined by RISC research). In design, Crossway won in the small publisher category; Abingdon as a mid-sized publisher; and Thomas Nelson as a large publisher. Winners for consumer research were WaterBrook Multnomah (small); Harvest House (mid-sized); and Zondervan (large). For more details on the winners, go to the ECPA website.

Random Acts of Kindness, the book that sparked the movement, is 20 years old, and to celebrate, the editors of Conari Press have compiled Random Acts of Kindness Then and Now (Feb. 2013), which includes stories from the original book with new material sourced from Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks. The anniversary edition includes stories of generosity and kindness in the wake of Super Storm Sandy, and Conari will donate a portion of the book’s proceeds to the American Red Cross.

Zondervan author Philip Yancey will speak at an open-to-the-public weekend event Dec. 28-30 at Walnut Hill Community Church, just outside of Newtown, Conn. Yancey will speak on the topic “Where is God When It Hurts?” also the title of his 2002 book for Zondervan (originally published by Walker & Company in 1988). There will be a question-and-answer session for those affected by the Sandy Hook school shootings, and Zondervan will provide free copies of Where Is God When It Hurts? to attendees; the e-book is currently available for free download in the U.S. on the Amazon, Apple, Barnes & Noble, Christian Book Distributors, Google, and Kobo Web sites until January 2.