International Concepts Shaker Bookcase, 48-Inch High, Solid Parawood, Unfinished

17 years ago I bought 4 chairs, an end table and a phone table from Lowe's made our of Parawood. We finished them with Minwax Wipe On Poly and we're still using them to this day. They've held up very nearly as well as our oak bedroom suite. Unfortunately, Lowe's quit carrying them shortly after our purchase and we just bought the shortest bookcase from Amazon ourselves. The book case was as easy to assemble as the furniture from 17 years ago and just as nice. A couple comments that should be worthwhile to the newest purchasers: 1. These are not perfect and have a few defects. They're made of wood and are handmade for the most part. Also, while they've been sanded, they do have some glue spots you will need to sand out with some 150 to 180 grit sandpaper BEFORE finishing, as these spots will not take finish. This is not an arduous task, but does take some patience, so if you're looking to assemble and throw some finish on, you may be disappointed. 3. I completed assembly of our shelving unit two days ago, so I have a recent unit. They now come with the back as a single, solid piece though you still have to use a drill to provide screw holes for the backing support brackets. Again, not that hard to do. 4. Finally, these are for "do it yourselfer's" and I'd rate them at the 2 to 3 difficulty level. Not that hard, just take a little patience. Remember, they are wood, they are solid and they have natural wood's natural flaws, part of what makes them interesting in my book. Just take your time, correct the minor flaws, handle the quirks and be patient with the sanding and finishing - you'll be glad you did. Don't forget that there's a lot of information on the web, make use of that if you need when refinishing these.

I would buy this again and may do so in the near future. I got the unfinished bookshelf, and it is absolutely beautiful! It is solid wood and very sturdy. The bookshelf was very easy to put together, however, like what some of the other's said in their reviews, the back took a little more work. They provide screws to attach the thin plywood to the back, but the wood is so hard and dense that you really need to drill little holes in it first. Doing that, made it go fast and easy! I just love it! Well worth the money spent! Oh, I was going to paint or stain it, but I haven't done anything just yet, because it's so pretty as is!

Sick and tired of press-board furniture, I wanted real wood bookshelves. These caught my attention for simple grace, price and solid appearance. I read the reviews and wasn't deterred by the minor complaints - I can find a hardware store if a wall bracket is missing! I was concerned about the packaging problems that seemed to be common but I could refuse them if they appeared to be damaged. I ordered 3 and they arrived in 2 separate shipments. One box was split open at the tape and the bottom badly dented, one was open but otherwise undamaged and the third was fine. Happily, the inside package was well placed and secure so the shelves were fine. All parts and pieces were there and in excellent condition. I had no problems with assembly but I would advise paying careful attention to the illustrations. The book shelf is meant to be assembled upside-down! To ensure easy installation of the back panels just keep an eye on the slide spacing as you are tightening bolts. The reinforcement straps applied behind the shelf really add a lot of stability to the 'flimsy' back panels. The side walls are not a single board but a well-laminated panel of small boards. If painting, you'll never know; if staining, they will present a somewhat checker-board design which I like but you might not. Still, solid wood not veneer. The individual shelves are very solid and single piece boards. The hardware is well placed, lines up and is heavy duty. I am delighted with all 3 and will buy more from this supplier. I have no complaints about the shelves but stronger tape on the shipping box would be recommended. Price? Worth every penny!

Bought this bookcase for my son's room. It's good quality except for the back piece. The rest of it feels solid, and it looks nice! It's full of books, homeschool materials, and his art cases. Holding up nicely!

We received our bookcase. It was easy to put together. We are very pleased with the quality and stability of it. Love the color and it is the size we were looking for. Love the color and very pleased as to how it looks

High quality bookshelf, very attractive with excellent fasteners and hardware. Assembly was easy, all hardware was nicely packaged.