826 National

As if Dave Eggers hadn't accomplished enough with his several successful and critically acclaimed books (one of which was a Pulitzer finalist), his own independent publishing house, and even being on a Beck album, I just found out that he also founded a national non-profit organization aimed to help kids with writing and one-on-one tutoring. It's called 826 National and there are seven locations across the US: San Francisco (the flagship chapter), New York, LA, Chicago, Seattle, Boston and Ann Arbor.

The most hilarious part to me, though, is that each of the chapter locations has its own storefront which sells books, of course, but also fun oddities. From the website:

"San Francisco’s pirate supply store sells glass eyes and one-of-a-kind peglegs, 826NYC’s Superhero Supply Company offers custom-fit capes, Seattle’s Greenwood Space Travel Supply Company sells all your space commuting appurtenances, 826michigan's Liberty Street Robot Supply & Repair Shop specializes in must-have mechanical conveniences, while 826LA features a time travel store, there's a secret agent supply store in Chicago, and the Cryptozoology shop in Boston is now open!"

Here are some of those products, designed especially for the 826 stores (and as seen on The Dieline).

From Valencia's pirate store:








From Brooklyn's Superhero Supply Company:







From Boston's Bigfoot Research Institute:





And last but not least, a few from Chicago's Boring Store(which is NOT a spy-supply store):







I think I might know a few kids who would love this stuff (and even a few "grown-ups" too!).