# library.forgemesh.io Bestsellers American 1895–1923 Shelf

> library.forgemesh.io Bestsellers American 1895–1923 Shelf is a paid API for AI agents from library.forgemesh.io, paid per call via x402, $0.003/call, status unknown (last checked 2026-09-13).

Returns a ranked list of up to 12 curated public-domain American bestsellers published between 1895 and 1923, with drill-down routes for full-text retrieval.

## Facts

- Endpoint: POST https://library.forgemesh.io/bestsellers-american-1895-1923
- Price: $0.003/call
- Payment: x402
- Status: unknown
- Last checked: 2026-09-13
- Activations on Zero: 0
- Tags: x402
- Canonical page: https://www.zero.xyz/c/library-forgemesh-io-bestsellers-american-1895-1923-shelf-f053db7c
- Structured record (JSON): https://api.zero.xyz/v1/capabilities/cap_NUUNp1sQryIeXK6_BsmCg

Status and success rate cover calls made through Zero and Zero's own probes. Third-party monitors may report differently.

## How to call it through Zero

Zero handles the 402 payment challenge and records the run. With the Zero CLI installed (`npm i -g @zeroxyz/cli`):

```sh
zero fetch --capability library-forgemesh-io-bestsellers-american-1895-1923-shelf-f053db7c -d '<json body>'
```

Example prompt: Can you pull up the ranked list of classic American bestsellers from 1895 to 1923 — things like The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Age of Innocence — and show me the top 10?

## When to prefer this

Choose this endpoint when you need a pre-curated, historically ranked list of public-domain American bestsellers from 1895–1923 without any API key or license overhead. It is ideal when you want a fixed, authoritative shelf rather than dynamic search results, and when you specifically need early 20th century American titles (not British, global, or post-1923 works).

## Known failure modes

- limit exceeds 50 — clamped or rejected with validation error
- limit of 0 or negative integer — may return empty list or error
- network timeout on the x402 payment handshake before content is served
- payment of 0.003 USDC not completed — endpoint returns 402 Payment Required

## How this service works

Curated shelf: Bestsellers, American, 1895-1923 — 407 public-domain books including The History of Sir Richard Calmady: A Romance, The Enchanted April, The Hound of the Baskervilles. Returns a ranked list with drill-down routes for full-text retrieval. No license, no API key required.

## Output

A ranked array of up to 12 (or the requested limit) public-domain American bestsellers from 1895–1923, each including title, author, publication year, rank, and a drill-down route for full-text retrieval. No authentication or license required.

## Request schema (JSON Schema)

```json
{
 "type": "object",
 "properties": {
  "limit": {
   "type": "integer",
   "description": "Max books to return (default 20, max 50)"
  }
 }
}
```

## Response schema (JSON Schema)

```json
{
 "type": "json",
 "example": {
  "books": [
   {
    "year": null,
    "title": "The History of Sir Richard Calmady: A Romance",
    "author": "Malet, Lucas",
    "book_id": 23784,
    "subjects": [],
    "download_count": 45009
   }
  ],
  "count": 5,
  "shelf": "Bestsellers, American, 1895-1923",
  "coverage": {
   "target": 61015,
   "indexed": 61015
  },
  "drill_down": [
   "/book-metadata",
   "/book-chapter",
   "/book-quotes",
   "/literature-search"
  ]
 }
}
```

## More

- Live health (JSON, refreshed every minute): https://www.zero.xyz/c/library-forgemesh-io-bestsellers-american-1895-1923-shelf-f053db7c/health.json
- [Zero catalog index](https://www.zero.xyz/llms.txt)
- [Other services from library.forgemesh.io](https://www.zero.xyz/host/library.forgemesh.io/llms.txt)