Cape May MAC debuts first children’s book!
Dr. Physick’s Dog Days of Summer features true tales of the good doctor and his dogs.
The Cape May MAC team is excited to announce our very first in-house children’s book! An original picture book featuring Cape May historic figure Dr. Emlen Physick and his dogs, titled “Dr. Physick’s Dog Days of Summer,” launched Aug. 14 and is available for purchase in our Carriage House Museum shop and online store.
In the hustle and bustle of Victorian–era Cape May, Dr. Emlen Physick has a very important job: taking care of his many, many, many dogs! Based on the true life of the dog-loving historical figure who built the Cape May mansion which would come to be known as the Physick Estate, this charming, illustrated children’s book recounts the daily happenings of Emlen, Aunt Emilie, Alice the Cook, and of course, the delightful dogs of the Estate.
The book is written by Cape May MAC Curator Ben Ridings and illustrated by designer Steven Olszewski.
Dr. Physick was renowned for his love of animals. He was the owner of Cape May’s Victorian House Museum, the 1879 Emlen Physick Estate. A group of volunteers saved the house from the wrecking ball over 50 years ago and in the process formed the organization that became Cape May MAC and ever since it has kept it maintained and open to the public as a museum. Thousands of visitors tour the estate each year and learn about Dr. Physick and his family who lived here at the turn of the 19th century.
Reaching children and young people is part of an ongoing effort in programming choices at Cape May MAC, so working to create a children’s book made exceptionally good sense, said Cape May MAC Director and CEO Jody Alessandrine.
“We were excited at the idea and the possibilities of bringing to life Dr. Physick and his dogs in story book form for children,” Alessandrine said. “That we have the uniquely talented, creative staff to bring this beautifully told and illustrated story into the world is phenomenal. I encourage everyone who has a youngster in their life to pick up a copy and to read it with them.”
The book is two years in the making. It began with an idea that grew out of the normal routine of a curator (Ridings) who also happens to dress like a Victorian gentleman from time to time and interact in character with visitors to the estate.
“The idea for the story came about by portraying Dr. Emlen Physick at various Cape May MAC events,” Ridings said. “I found that one way to connect with children is to talk about Dr. Physick’s dogs. Children’s eyes light up and they love to talk about their own pets. The challenge was gathering all of Dr. Physick’s true stories relating to dogs and making those stories accessible to children.”
Once the story took shape, a collaboration began to form. The pandemic played a role.
“It began as sort of a hobby project during the pandemic,” said Olszewski. “Eliza mentioned the story about Dr. Physick and his dogs back in 2020, and while we were all isolating, I’d pick up my iPad and sketch.”
Eliza is Cape May MAC’s Chief Outreach Officer Eliza Lotozo, who nurtured the project to fruition.
“I knew the illustrator, Steven Olszewski, and had seen some of his work which I thought would be perfect for a children’s book,” she said. “I connected him with our Curator Ben Ridings, who wrote a script for the story, and the ball really got rolling from there. I worked with Steven as the illustrator and our designers from Princeton Strategic Communications group to put the final project together, which we submitted for publishing and printing this summer. I personally had not gone through the publishing process before, so it was great to learn how that process works.”
Making a Victorian gentleman relatable to children was the key for Olszewski.
“I tried to make the characters, and the world we built around them, timeless and accessible. It was important for them to live in their Victorian world, but I didn’t want it to be too stuffy for our young audiences, now and in the years ahead.
“I really enjoy the opportunity to be a bridge between our past and now,” he said. “The fact that Dr. Physick cared for and rescued dogs makes him so much more human and relatable to someone today. To help illustrate, literally, such an integral part of a living person’s character is an honor.”
Ridings is a young husband and father with a family beagle named Coolidge, and so he is connected to the story and the project personally as well as professionally. “I have two children of my own, and we read together daily. This book is not only special because it is my first, but also, I can share it with my kids.”
