This is a great addition for our numerous books. We are avid book readers and we homeschool. The shelves fit a 13"x 13" canvas storage box, and all our extra art supplies are neatly tucked away - instead of cluttering my room in stacked 1 8gallon bins. All the school books fit and I had room for some of the kid's games, as well as finally unboxing my books (which had to be stored so I could keep the school books out). We did anchor the unit to the wall, but the unit is quite sturdy. We're buying a second unit for the other space beside the fireplace shortly.