Bookends don’t need to be boring. Balvi make a nice range of bookends (and other items) that offer a bit of design and style.
If you’re into Spanish literature then you might appreciate the Don Quixote inspired one:
Or if you’re just into reading in general you might like this “librarian” style one:
Or if you’re a romantic or into Shakespeare there’s also this quite elaborate Romeo and Juliet one complete with balcony:
I quite like the chef one for a kitchen eg. if you wanted a simple bookend to hold up some cookery books:
Balvi don’t sell directly, but you’ll find their products on eBay, Amazon and elsewhere.