BookBrainz API
BookBrainz open book metadata API for searching and retrieving structured works, editions, authors, publishers, series, and edition groups.
Connect this API to an AI agent Browse all specs
What you can do with BookBrainz API via MCP
Every endpoint below becomes a governed tool your AI agent (Claude, ChatGPT, or a customer-facing VX agent) can call — with scoped permissions, sandbox testing, and audit logs.
| Method | Path | Operation | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| GET | /search |
SearchBookbrainzEntities | Search BookBrainz entities Method: GET Path: /search IMPORTANT: This function has 1 REQUIRED parameter(s) and 3 OPTIONAL parameter(s) REQUIRED parameters MUST be provided OPTIONAL parameters can be omitted if not needed Parameters: Query Parameters: REQUIRED: - query: Free-text search expression. OPTIONAL: - type: Optional entity type. - limit: Maximum number of results. - offset: Result offset. |
| GET | /work/{bbid} |
GetWork | Get work Method: GET Path: /work/{bbid} IMPORTANT: This function has 1 REQUIRED parameter(s) and 0 OPTIONAL parameter(s) REQUIRED parameters MUST be provided OPTIONAL parameters can be omitted if not needed Parameters: Path Parameters: REQUIRED: - bbid: BookBrainz identifier. |
| GET | /edition/{bbid} |
GetEdition | Get edition Method: GET Path: /edition/{bbid} IMPORTANT: This function has 1 REQUIRED parameter(s) and 0 OPTIONAL parameter(s) REQUIRED parameters MUST be provided OPTIONAL parameters can be omitted if not needed Parameters: Path Parameters: REQUIRED: - bbid: BookBrainz identifier. |
| GET | /author/{bbid} |
GetAuthor | Get author Method: GET Path: /author/{bbid} IMPORTANT: This function has 1 REQUIRED parameter(s) and 0 OPTIONAL parameter(s) REQUIRED parameters MUST be provided OPTIONAL parameters can be omitted if not needed Parameters: Path Parameters: REQUIRED: - bbid: BookBrainz identifier. |
| GET | /publisher/{bbid} |
GetPublisher | Get publisher Method: GET Path: /publisher/{bbid} IMPORTANT: This function has 1 REQUIRED parameter(s) and 0 OPTIONAL parameter(s) REQUIRED parameters MUST be provided OPTIONAL parameters can be omitted if not needed Parameters: Path Parameters: REQUIRED: - bbid: BookBrainz identifier. |
Usage guide
## Authentication The public BookBrainz read routes documented by the official Swagger UI do not advertise an API key or bearer token. Use a descriptive `User-Agent`, respect rate limits, and follow MetaBrainz/BookBrainz service guidance. If the provider introduces authentication for a future route, follow the current official documentation rather than sending a made-up token. ## Coverage Includes entity search plus public work, edition, author, and publisher lookups by BBID. The official API is versioned under `/1`.
How to use this spec
- Create a free VX Agents account (sandbox tools included).
- Open the marketplace and connect “BookBrainz API” to an agent.
- Expose it as an MCP server for Claude/ChatGPT, or chat with it directly.