Books API

A lightweight Flask REST API for managing books without a database. Book data is stored in a local JSON file so the project remains simple and easy to run locally.

Features

• CRUD operations for books
• JSON file-based persistence
• Swagger/OpenAPI documentation
• environment-driven configuration
• easy Postman testing

Tech Stack

• Python 3
• Flask 3.x
• Flasgger
• Gunicorn for production serving

Project Structure

• app.py - Flask app and API endpoints
• requirements.txt - project dependencies
• data/books.json - local storage for books
• Books_LocalHost.postman_collection.json - Postman requests
• tests/test_app.py - API regression tests

Setup

1. Clone or download this repository.
2. Open a terminal in the project folder.
3. Create and activate a virtual environment (optional but recommended):

python -m venv .venv
.venv\Scripts\activate

4. Install dependencies:

pip install -r requirements.txt

Run the API

python app.py

The app runs by default on:

• http://127.0.0.1:5000

Swagger Docs

Swagger UI is available at:

• http://127.0.0.1:5000/apidocs

Environment Variables

You can override the default file storage and runtime settings with environment variables:

set BOOKS_DATA_FILE=C:\path\to\books.json
set HOST=0.0.0.0
set PORT=5000

If not provided, the app uses:

• data/books.json
• 0.0.0.0
• 5000

API Endpoints

GET /books

Returns all books.

POST /books

Creates a new book.

Example body:

{
  "name": "Clean Code",
  "price": 399,
  "isbn": 102,
  "author": "Robert C. Martin"
}

GET /books/

Returns a single book matched by ISBN.

PUT /books/

Replaces an existing book by ISBN.

PATCH /books/

Updates selected fields on an existing book without replacing the full record.

Example body:

{
  "price": 450,
  "author": "Updated Author"
}

DELETE /books/

Deletes a book by ISBN.

Postman

1. Open Postman.
2. Import Books_LocalHost.postman_collection.json.
3. Ensure the collection uses the local server URL http://127.0.0.1:5000.
4. Run the requests in order or individually.

Optional: run collection with Newman

npm install -g newman
newman run Books_LocalHost.postman_collection.json

Notes

• No database is used in this project.
• Data persists in the JSON file configured by BOOKS_DATA_FILE.
• For production, it is recommended to move this to a proper database and add authentication/validation as needed.