This is the basic set-up I have in mind. Option 2 would be to order doors matching ours to cover the end panel (similar to the picture). The door would be very tall and narrow, though. Will the proportions be weird?

Option 3 would be something like this. This is a window seat bookcase I built in our son's nursery. I could do small display shelves facing forward, then larger shelves on the side. I still end up with a flat panel on the side, but it's narrower and not next to cabinet doors, so I think it would work better. Any ideas?

Are you taking votes? I vote for #2. I like the clean and functional look.

I like option #2. It has a clean look and having the panels on the front will look much nicer than just a plain slab. I don't think the proportions would look weird at all, it would be quite similar to the picture, no? Which I think looks great.

I like option #2 although I have to admit I'm having trouble visualizing option #3 since I have to use my design imagination, which is nil.
Do you have enough room between the bookcase & your doorway to do Option #2?
Also, I have to ask. How does Max feel about losing his "space"?

Option 2 looks great! I like the nursery set-up that you did a lot (it's so cute!), but prefer Option 2 for the kitchen

I'm with Romy, I'm more concerned about Max losing his dining room. :)

I like #2 best, although the main difference is you will be right up against that room change corner whereas your inspiration photo has a bit more space in front of it. It will probably be fine and will look good on all sides.

I really like what you did in your son's nursery. Yes, you would still have the flat area, but it's a really nice use of storage space.

Romy: if you took the vertical shelf tower on the far left side of the picture and plunked it up against the pantry cabinet, that would be option 3. Does that help?

There is 10.5 inches of space beside the pantry before the wall angles away, which is just the right amount of depth for a bookshelf.

Thanks for the input Aine and SJH. I like option 2 as well, however, the doors in the picture are much plainer than ours. If we match our raised panel doors, I wonder if it will be too busy?

Max will have his "space" on the bottom shelf of the new built-in, so it will be an upgrade for him! He's the main reason for the redo, since he's a gray and white shih-tzu who doesn't match our current kitchen at all. Of course, GW has taught me that's unacceptable!

Thanks Jelly and Linelle. Seems like #2 is most popular. DW agrees, though I was rooting for #3

What kind of books do you want to put there? If large cookbooks (which is what I want!), measure 'em first--10.5 inches will be eaten fairly quickly, you lose some to having a back on the bookcase, etc....

And I'd do the doors on the side--though 10.5" is, indeed, pretty small. Make 'em line up with the lines of the cab beside it, of course.

Though...well, I'm planning the same basic thing, but only with an upper cab, and my plan is flat side and then some cup-hooks for various flat-ish utensils (useful but nice looking ones, I should say!). Probably not something you'd want, I'm not a "everything put away" person & most people here are.

I like #2 as a model, except: I would not have a toe kick like that. Mine would just be set in about 1/2 -3/4" on both sides. Having a "normal" toe-kick depth under that small section makes it look unattractively top-heavy to me.

Measure your cookbooks, but only the hugest will be more than 10.5"

L.

I definitely like #2! Build a built in dog food dish in the bookcase when you do this. So Max won't be ousted :)

I built in a 12" pantry wall next to my fridge, so I have a slab side next to the cabinet doors over the fridge. I also have a 9" base cabinet next to the sink - the raised panel door does get rather busy, IMHO. Totally personal preference (and budget) - I just wanted you to have a visual.

Oh, and by all means no toekick!

I think I'm changing my vote. Since the new cabinet is going to be close to doorway, I'm thinking Option #3 might be better. It would appear more open & less visually heavy. Obviously, my vote can be swayed.
So glad Max will have a kitchen that matches him. Poor little guy.

Your #2 model, and your adorable nursery design, both go all the way to the ceiling, but your kitchen pantry cabinet doesn't. I believe that will make a big difference.

Are you planning some tweak that takes the pantry cabinet to the ceiling, and then the planned bookcase up to the ceiling also?

If not, then another option to consider is floating shelves instead of a fully framed bookcase. You might put one solid wood shelf at the same level as the center rail of the lower pantry door, and then space floating glass shelves above that. It would leave the floor for Max's dining room, and the eye movement through that floor space instead of closing it off in that corner. Also, you wouldn't have to deal with the tall, thin side panels that are worrying you. Just an idea...

What condition are the books in that would be there? If they look like mine, you might want to put doors on the shelves.

Anne

We added two bookcases flanking the desk; the front panel (can't find any pictures) matches the other doors. Love your inspiration pictures. Any room with books is a much warmer room :)

Oldbat, every time I see a picture of an area of your home I haven't seen before I am impressed. You & DH have a special talent for design. Beautiful moldings.

Thanks for the input everyone. Oldbat and annkh, your pictures are great and very helpful.

Smiling, I had thought about some kind of floating shelves there. After your post I'm liking that more and more. Our kitchen is small and dark, and one of the objectives of the refresh is to make it feel more open (without any structural or square footage changes). The closed in bookcase may work contrary to our goal, even if all the cabinets are painted white.

Since Max has generated so much interest, here's a pic. You can see he clashes horribly with the current floor.

Just as another idea, we had a book rack made for the end of our fridge. I also wanted to avoid the large blank expanse of wood and needed a place for cookbooks. However, we didn't have the depth for a full bookshelf. I got the idea here at GW from the kitchen of LAXSupermom.

What a great idea, control freak! I like that a lot. Only downside is that you can only put books. No tchotchke display. That's going on my list as Option 5