Can I search for books by William Shakespeare?

Yes! Use the `search_author` tool with the name 'Shakespeare'. It will return a list of his famous plays and sonnets available on Project Gutenberg.

How do I find books about a specific subject like 'History'?

Use the `search_books` tool and include the subject in your query. Your agent will search the entire catalog for titles matching that theme.

Can I get the full text of a book directly?

The current server focuses on metadata and discovery. You can retrieve the official Project Gutenberg ID for any book, which can be used to find the full text on their website.

Project Gutenberg MCP Server for VS Code Copilot 3 tools — connect in under 2 minutes

Name: Project Gutenberg
Availability: InStock
Author: Vinkius

code.visualstudio.com/docs/copilot/chat/mcp-servers

Built by Vinkius GDPR 3 Tools IDE

GitHub Copilot in VS Code is the most widely adopted AI coding assistant, embedded directly into the world's most popular code editor. With MCP support in Agent mode, Copilot can access external data and APIs to generate context-aware code grounded in real-time information.

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Classic Setup·json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "project-gutenberg": {
      "url": "https://edge.vinkius.com/[YOUR_TOKEN_HERE]/mcp"
    }
  }
}

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About Project Gutenberg MCP Server

Equip your AI agent with the largest library of free public domain books through the Project Gutenberg MCP server. This integration provides access to over 60,000 eBooks, allowing your agent to search for classic literature, retrieve detailed metadata for specific titles, and explore works by your favorite authors. Whether you're conducting literary research, looking for historical texts, or simply seeking a new read, your agent acts as a dedicated digital librarian through natural conversation.

GitHub Copilot Agent mode brings Project Gutenberg data directly into your VS Code workflow. With a project-scoped config, the entire team shares access to 3 tools. Copilot queries live data, generates typed code, and writes tests from actual API responses, all without leaving the editor.

What you can do

Book Search — Find classic books by title, keyword, or subject across a massive collection.
Author Exploration — List all available works by a specific author registered in the database.
Metadata Retrieval — Fetch IDs, languages, and detailed info for any book in the collection.
Literary Auditing — Summarize multiple classic works to compare themes and historical contexts.

The Project Gutenberg MCP Server exposes 3 tools through the Vinkius. Connect it to VS Code Copilot in under two minutes — no API keys to rotate, no infrastructure to provision, no vendor lock-in. Your configuration, your data, your control.

How to Connect Project Gutenberg to VS Code Copilot via MCP

Follow these steps to integrate the Project Gutenberg MCP Server with VS Code Copilot.

Create MCP config

Create a .vscode/mcp.json file in your project root

Add the server config

Paste the JSON configuration above

Enable Agent mode

Open GitHub Copilot Chat and switch to Agent mode using the dropdown

Start using Project Gutenberg

Ask Copilot: "Using Project Gutenberg, help me...". 3 tools available

Why Use VS Code Copilot with the Project Gutenberg MCP Server

GitHub Copilot for Visual Studio Code provides unique advantages when paired with Project Gutenberg through the Model Context Protocol.

VS Code is used by over 70% of developers. adding MCP tools to Copilot means your team can leverage external data without leaving their primary editor

Project-scoped MCP configs (`.vscode/mcp.json`) let you commit server configurations to your repository, ensuring the entire team shares the same tool access

Copilot's Agent mode integrates MCP tools seamlessly with file editing, terminal commands, and workspace search in a single agentic loop

GitHub's enterprise compliance and audit features extend to MCP tool usage, providing visibility into how AI interacts with external services

Project Gutenberg + VS Code Copilot Use Cases

Practical scenarios where VS Code Copilot combined with the Project Gutenberg MCP Server delivers measurable value.

Live API integration: Copilot can query an MCP server, inspect the response schema, and generate typed API client code in the same step

DevSecOps workflows: security teams can give developers access to domain intelligence tools directly in their editor for real-time vulnerability assessment during code review

Data pipeline development: Copilot fetches sample data via MCP and generates transformation scripts, validators, and test fixtures from actual API responses

Documentation generation: Copilot queries available tools and auto-generates README sections, API reference docs, and usage examples

Project Gutenberg MCP Tools for VS Code Copilot (3)

These 3 tools become available when you connect Project Gutenberg to VS Code Copilot via MCP:

get_book_details

Get details for a specific Gutenberg book

search_author

Search for books by author

search_gutenberg_books

Search for books on Project Gutenberg

Example Prompts for Project Gutenberg in VS Code Copilot

Ready-to-use prompts you can give your VS Code Copilot agent to start working with Project Gutenberg immediately.

"Find the book 'Pride and Prejudice' on Project Gutenberg."

"List all available works by 'Mark Twain'."

"Search for books about 'Philosophy'."

Troubleshooting Project Gutenberg MCP Server with VS Code Copilot

Common issues when connecting Project Gutenberg to VS Code Copilot through the Vinkius, and how to resolve them.

MCP tools not available

Ensure you are in Agent mode in Copilot Chat. MCP tools only appear in Agent mode.

Project Gutenberg + VS Code Copilot FAQ

Common questions about integrating Project Gutenberg MCP Server with VS Code Copilot.

Which VS Code version supports MCP?

MCP support requires VS Code 1.99 or later with the GitHub Copilot extension. Ensure both are updated to the latest version. Older versions of Copilot may not expose the Agent mode toggle.

How do I switch to Agent mode?

Open the Copilot Chat panel and look for two mode options: "Ask" and "Agent". Click "Agent" to enable autonomous tool calling. In Ask mode, Copilot provides conversational answers but cannot invoke MCP tools.

Can I restrict which MCP tools Copilot can access?

Yes. VS Code shows a tool consent dialog before any MCP tool is invoked for the first time. You can also configure tool access policies at the organization level through GitHub Copilot settings.

Does MCP work in VS Code Remote or Codespaces?

Yes. MCP servers configured via .vscode/mcp.json work in Remote SSH, WSL, and GitHub Codespaces environments. The MCP connection is established from the remote host, so ensure the server URL is accessible from that environment.