Book Catalog API in Python

Level: Real World

Your task for today is to create a RESTful API for a book catalog system that reads data from a text file and serves it through HTTP endpoints. This project introduces you to API development, HTTP methods, and working with file-based data storage.

Project Task

Create a Book Catalog API that:

• Reads book data from a text file (CSV

  Use this CSV file as data source.

• Implements RESTful API endpoints for CRUD operations:

  • GET /books - List all books

  • GET /books/{id} - Get a specific book by ID

  • POST /books - Add a new book

  • PUT /books/{id} - Update a book

  • DELETE /books/{id} - Delete a book

• Returns data in JSON format

• Handles common HTTP status codes (200, 201, 404, 400)

• Persists changes back to the text file

• Includes search and filter functionality

Bonus (optional):

• Add pagination for large book lists

• Implement filtering by author, genre, or year

• Add basic authentication

• Create API documentation

• Add data validation for book entries

This project gives you hands-on practice with API development, HTTP protocols, file I/O, JSON handling, and RESTful design patterns — essential skills for backend development.

Expected Output

Once you build the API, you can make requests to the API endpoints and get back the data.

• Getting all the books:

  http://localhost:8000/books

  

2. Getting only the first book:

   http://localhost:8000/books/1

   

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