André Blais Books

An original, parsimonious, and elegant explanation of why we vote or abstain in elections.

This Element examines citizens' perceptions, their knowledge of the system, and whether they support it. The authors connect this with information on citizens' reported turnout and vote choice to assess who is affected by mandatory voting. Each country has its own set of rules, and most voters are unaware of how they are enforced.

In April 2017, Laura Stephenson gave birth to twin girls. Twelve months later, with three children under 6, and working as a fundraiser for a cancer charity, she was diagnosed with Stage 4 Bowel Cancer. On December 28th 2019 Laura's body lost its fight. Throughout her journey, Laura kept a blog which detailed her courage and faith during the last 20 months. This unusual book details the writings of a remarkable woman. Her words have inspired and captivated many. "Nobody said it would be easy" is a collection of blog entries, quotes and written messages. Laura's faith clearly shines through but her entries and thoughts are pertinent to many people's daily lives. This book is about living, about faith, about courage and about an unswerving belief that those with cancer can live an amazing life! "Laura's words are far more powerful than any I could write. It's only now in the last few days, I realise that the person that I used to say, "Aw well that's just Laura", was in fact an incredible person that I took for granted." This book is about a person who inspired others by her faith, positivity and courage; a person who was hugely regarded by everyone she met; a person who was loved by and loved, so many people. Without a doubt, the best person to talk about Laura is Laura; This is her story.