The presentation of the Phillis Wheatley Book Awards opened the 12th annual Harlem Book Fair. The award, named for the first published African-American female writer, is given for literary work and literary advocacy that transcends culture, boundary, and perception.

Tribute was paid to C-SPAN's Book TV, which was again airing live coverage of the book fair from the Langston Hughes Auditorium in the New York Public Library's Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

Tribute was paid to Howard Dobson, who would be retiring in February 2011 after leading the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture for over 25 years.