Skip to content
Get packs

Calibre E-book Library CLI

Lets an agent manage a Calibre e-book library: search, edit metadata, convert formats, export.

Source Download skill
Repository
HKUDS/CLI-Anything
Stars
58,084
Licence
Apache-2.0
Files
1 file

What it does

This skill teaches an AI agent to operate Calibre, a popular desktop e-book manager, through a command-line tool called cli-anything-calibre. Once installed, the agent can list and search books in your library, edit titles, authors, tags, series and ratings, convert a book between formats such as EPUB, MOBI and PDF, export chapters as separate PDFs, and generate catalogs. It works by calling the real Calibre tools already on your computer and returns structured JSON that the agent can read.

Great for

  • Owners of large Calibre libraries who want to clean up metadata in bulk through an assistant
  • Authors or editors converting manuscripts between EPUB, PDF and other formats
  • Developers or scripters who want a structured, JSON-based interface to Calibre

Skip it if

  • People without Calibre installed, since the real Calibre tools are a hard requirement
  • Anyone who wants the agent to change a library they have not backed up: removing books and editing metadata or formats modify files directly, so mistakes can be hard to undo
  • Non-technical users who are uncomfortable installing Python packages from GitHub and running a terminal

Try asking

  • “Connect to my Calibre library at ~/Calibre Library and list every book by Isaac Asimov”
  • “Convert my EPUB of Foundation to MOBI and save it in /tmp”
  • “Set the series to Foundation and series index to 1 for book 42”
  • “Export each chapter of book 42 as a separate PDF into ./pdfs”
Step-by-step guide: how to use Calibre E-book Library CLIInstall, first run, examples, tips and FAQs

Install in 3 steps

  1. 1

    Download the skill

    The ZIP contains the 1 original files, the Apache-2.0 licence and an attribution note.

    skills.zip
  2. 2

    Add it to your agent

    Claude Code (all projects)

    mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills && unzip skills.zip -d ~/.claude/skills/

    Claude Code / Agent SDK (this project only)

    mkdir -p .claude/skills && unzip skills.zip -d .claude/skills/

    Claude apps (web/desktop): Settings → Capabilities → Skills → Upload skill, and choose the ZIP.

  3. 3

    Ask for the task

    No special command needed — the agent reads the skill's description and loads it when your request matches. Try one of the prompts above.

Get better results

  • Back up your Calibre library folder before running remove, set or convert commands on important books.
  • Always use the --json flag when the agent needs to parse output, and check return codes before trusting results.
  • Set the CALIBRE_LIBRARY environment variable or use --library so the agent always targets the intended library.

What's inside

  • SKILL.md

Redistributed unmodified from HKUDS/CLI-Anything under the Apache-2.0 licence. The assessment was drafted with AI from the skill's files on 2026-10-29. Skills can instruct your agent to run code — read SKILL.md and any scripts before installing.