May Spangler is an architect from the Beaux-Arts School in Paris and a PhD in French from Emory University in Atlanta, who combines her interests in architecture and literature in her writing and illustrations. Her books in French and English include a monograph, Monstrer Diderot, a memoir, Papa a dit, Maman aussi, a student textbook and teacher manual, Paris in Architecture, Literature, and Art. Her memoir, The Architect’s Eye, Parisian Girl Meets Southern Boy, will be published in 2027. She is now working on her next book, Memoir of a Parisian.
Under Contract with Legacy Book Press
THE ARCHITECT’S EYE
Parisian Girl Meets Southern Boy
How can you justify leaving everything you’ve known your whole life, including Paris, for the love of a small-town Southerner? Even knowing the ending, you’ll keep guessing until the last page of THE ARCHITECT’S EYE.
Atlanta, 1978. Parisian May arrives at Georgia Tech to study architecture, seeking to redefine herself away from a disappointing romantic relationship, an overbearing father, and the misogyny of the Beaux-Arts School. She strives for emotional independence, but meets Southern Dickie and can’t resist his enthusiasm and humor. While they share the language of architecture, May struggles with the language of American love and fails to understand Dickie’s feelings. Haunted by her past and reluctant to risk their friendship over a misunderstanding, she can’t bring herself to reach out to him. After seven months in the U.S. and still too confused to embrace love, she leaves, convinced she’ll never come back.
“This guy purges his words of rough consonants, like my roommate Leslie saying ‘Adlana’ instead of ‘Atlanta’ last night. It must be the Southern accent some passengers warned us about on the plane, which was funny since they also had strong accents. Southern or Northern, it’s all American to us.” —May Spangler, The Architect’s Eye.
“It feels like I’ve known him for a long time, but it’s only been three months. Three months isn’t much. I think I love him, but is it the kind of love that can last a lifetime? Would I wake up one day and find his high forehead and straight nose stupid? Does everlasting love even exist? After all, Juliet and Iseult had to die to preserve their love for eternity.” —May Spangler, The Architect’s Eye.