Gutendex

What gutendex does

The gutendex MCP server provides MCP access to Gutendex, an API for Project Gutenberg book data. It is intended for agents that need to find public-domain books, inspect catalog metadata, or identify books by popularity or subject.

The server returns structured catalog information rather than book content. Search results can include book IDs, titles, authors, and download counts. A lookup by ID adds publication year, language, available formats, and download count. Topic browsing accepts subjects such as science fiction or philosophy.

How it works

The gutendex MCP server supports four pack-specific tools:

• search_books searches by book title or author name.
• get_book retrieves metadata for a specific book ID.
• popular_books lists highly downloaded books with popularity statistics.
• books_by_topic finds books associated with a subject or topic.

It can be connected through the hosted Pipeworx MCP endpoint at https://gateway.pipeworx.io/gutendex/mcp. The hosted connection also exposes shared Pipeworx gateway tools, including routing and discovery tools. The exact gateway tool scope is returned during MCP initialization and may change.

A local package is also available. The standalone process communicates over standard input and output and exposes only the Gutendex pack tools, without the gateway's shared meta-tools or cross-catalog routing.

Setup and configuration

For a hosted connection, add the endpoint to an MCP client's server configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "gutendex": {
      "url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/gutendex/mcp"
    }
  }
}

The README names Claude Desktop, Cursor, and Windsurf as compatible client examples.

For local stdio use, configure the package with npx:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "gutendex": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@pipeworx/mcp-gutendex"]
    }
  }
}

You can also start it directly with npx -y @pipeworx/mcp-gutendex. The package requires no Pipeworx account and avoids a gateway round trip.

Tools and capabilities

The gutendex MCP server is suited to workflows such as finding books by an author, retrieving metadata after selecting a result, assembling a list of popular titles, or browsing a subject area. The hosted gateway additionally supports direct HTTP tool calls. For example, POST https://gateway.pipeworx.io/v1/tools/gutendex_search_books can invoke a search with a JSON query payload.

The full Pipeworx gateway is another connection option. It lists all catalog packs directly, while the Gutendex endpoint lists the Gutendex pack directly and still provides gateway routing through shared tools.

Limitations and notes

Hosted pack endpoints include shared gateway tools, so their tool count is larger than the four Gutendex-specific tools. Local stdio mode does not include those shared tools. The documentation does not specify environment variables or additional configuration options.