The literary community has created a number of relief efforts after the destruction of Hurricane Sandy.

If you want to help, you bid at the Kidlit Cares auction raising relief funds. Some of the items include Skype author visits with Elephant & Piggie author Mo Willems, Speak author Laurie Halse Anderon and Divergent author Veronica Roth. Nonprofit group First Book is asking for donations so that they can give new books to children affected by the storm.

Check out NYCService.org to learn about ways to help out in the New York City area. For the readers who don’t live nearby, but want to come out to the East Coast to volunteer, travel service Airbnb is offering fee-free rentals until November 7th.

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The National Education Association (NEA) has teamed up with the NEA Foundation to host “The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse Charity Auction.”

The proceeds derived from the Internet auction will benefit the NEA Foundation’s “Art Inspires Learning, Learning Inspires Art” initiative. This project funds arts education grants for teachers. Follow this link to check out the artwork.

Here’s more from the release: “This initiative was inspired by Eric Carle‘s picture book The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse, which celebrates imagination and artistic freedom. Each donated piece of art will feature that artist’s interpretation of a horse and celebrates imagination and the many and varied ways that each artist sees the world around him/her. The auction will include three waves of art: Group 1 will take place October 17th-27th. Group 2 will take place October 31st-November 10th. Group 3 will take place November 14th-24th.”

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Publishers Albert Whitman & Company, Chronicle Books, Gibbs Smith Publishers, and Running Press, have joined together to celebrate this year’s National Doodle Day. In preparation for the May 12th event, several authors and illustrators of children’s books have donated doodles for its annual eBay auction.

Here’s more from the press release: “Daniel Pinkwater, Annie Barrows, Tom Lichtenheld, Calef Brown, Peter Reynolds, Eric Carle, Jon Scieszka, Mo Willems, and Lydia Bastianich all agreed to create unique doodles for the auction. Doodles can be viewed at doodledayusa.org until the launch of the eBay auction on May 12.”

Some authors, like Kurt Vonnegut, have attracted as much fame for their doodles as they have for their writing. Reportedly, this is the first year publishers have participated in National Doodle Day. The publishers will host public events on that day in the following cities: Chicago, Salt Lake City, and Sausalito.

The 2011 finalists for the Children’s Choice Book Awards have been revealed. Kids can vote from March 14th to April 29th, and the winners will be announced live at the Children’s Choice Book Awards gala in May. Individual title nominees have been divided into four groups classified by different school grades.

In the Author of the Year category, teen fiction writers dominate. The nominees include Suzanne Collins for Mockingjay, Stephenie Meyer for The Second Short Life of Bree Tanner, Rick Riordan for The Lost Hero, Jeff Kinney for Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth, and Cassandra Clare for Clockwork Angel.

Children of all grades are encouraged to vote for the Illustrator of the Year award. Those nominated for in this category include Loren Long for President Barack Obama‘s Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters, David Wiesner for Art & Max, Mo Willems for Knuffle Bunny Free: An Unexpected Diversion, Robin Preiss Glasser for Fancy Nancy and the Fabulous Fashion Boutique, and Nancy Tillman for Wherever You Are: My Love Will Find You. Who do you want to win?