We Can Live Like This

A Memoir of a Culture

Michigan. To tens of thousands of womyn from around the globe, the word meant not a state in the upper Midwest of the U.S., but a state of mind, a state of freedom. A culture, a community, a revolution. The Land. From 1976 to 2015, the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival was home ground for the lesbian feminist movement. There we strove to embody the principles of matriarchal feminism and bring that wisdom to life in every aspect of the town we created, and the values that guided our lives together.

©2024 Lisa Vogel (P)2024 Lisa Vogel

Tea (lovingly) spilled !

LisaVogel immediately establishes this is her story, without apology. Her impressive storytelling allows readers to imagine, or re-live, the most significant collective cultural experience in the lives of thousands of lesbians,other-identified womyn, and several generations of Gaia girls. Lisa Vogel doesn't shy away from chronicling her journey through personal conflicts nor the public controversies that impacted the Festival throughout its herstory. She relates her experiences and holds space for readers to honor their own. Missteps and challenges were integral to this decades-long phenomon.The Amazonian city that hosted the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival was literally re- built each year with perseverance, mad skills, sweat equity, immense financial risks, and Indomitable Spirit. This book promotes the principle of " It's more important to understand than to be understood ". It reminds us to live with compassion, challenging us to live honorable lives that cultivate and spread joy.
I'm grateful to have made this choice for the first book in my Audible library.

Women Rule!

This was a beautiful telling of the birth and history of the Michigan Womyns’ Music Festival, told by the creator, who was the heart and soul of it. Those forty years were years of incredible growth and changes in society and through it all the festival persevered because of the amazing amazons who wanted it and worked for it. The few times I attended were joyous and life affirming, but I had no real grasp on how much work, physically, emotionally, psychically and financially went into it. Thank you LV for all the years and especially for sharing your story so eloquently. We CAN live like this.

Lesbian history comes alive

For anyone who has been to Michigan, this book is a wonderful walk down memory lane. I found the behind the scenes information interesting.

This festival was cleary a lifetime labor of love and I, for one am so grateful to Lisa for her commitment, love and energy she gave to this special place.

Thank you for the magic.

Heart Warming Journey

Loved listening to Lisa tell her/our story was a wonderful gift. Made me laugh, cray and sigh.

Fabulous accounting of a culture now gone

Lisa Vogel, a giant of Lesbian Feminist culture, has gone from being a generator of culture to a chronicaler of it. With heart and courage she shares not only a motherlode of anthropological information about this unique culture (should anyone want to study it), but also her personal journey as the embodiment of the struggles within the culture. We can’t thank her enough for what she has done over the years to shepherd the best that women’s culture has to offer, and to provide a spiritual home to women, lost and isolated, within patriarchy. Thank you, Amazon…