One Piece by Eiichiro Oda

Title: One Piece Volume 15

Author: Eiichiro Oda

ISBN: 9781421510927

Publisher: VIZ Media LLC

Copyright Date: 1997

Genre: Manga

About the Author:

 Eiichiro Oda is a Japanese manga artist. He is best known for his manga One Piece. One Piece is the biggest selling manga in history. It has sold over 300 million copies world wide. The series’ popularity resulted in him being named one of the manga artists that changed the history of manga.

Eiichiro Oda was born in Japan in January 1, 1975. He wanted to become a manga artist to avoid getting a real job. He is a big fan of Akira Toriyama. Akira Toriya created Dragon Ball series. Oda is a big fan of Dragon Ball. He says its his inspiration. As a child he liked pirates a lot.

At the age of 17, Oda submitted his work Wanted! and won several awards. At the age of 19, he began working as an assistant to Nobuhiro Watsuki on Rurouni Kenshin. Oda drew two pirate-themed one-shot stories called “Romance Dawn“. It became the most successful manga in history named One Piece. In 1997, One Piece began serialization in Weekly Shōnen Jump. It tells the story of a young boy who wants to become King of the Pirates. He sets of on an amazing never ending journey with his Nakamas. It is the most selling manga of all time. Its closest rival is his idol Akira Toriyama‘s Dragon Ball.

In 2004, Eiichiro Oda was married to Chiaki Inaba. Chiaki played Nami in one of the Jump Fiestas. He is good friends with Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro, the author of Toriko. He considers Masashi Kishimoto to be his rival and friend.

Short Biography. Eiichiro Oda. https://short-biography.com/eiichiro-oda.htm.

Curriculum Ties:

•  Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).
• Analyze a particular point of view or cultural experience reflected in a work of literature from outside the United States, drawing on a wide reading of world literature.

Plot Summary:

 The series of One Piece chronicles the adventures of Luffy and his crew as he works to become King of the Pirates. In this part of the story, Luffy and his crew are stranded on an island with two giant warriors. They manage to find their way off, but to do so they have to sail through a giant goldfish, which the two giants free them from. They are also being hunted, and are attacked by Walpol, a pirate who eats metal. They defeat him and start to look for a doctor for Nami, who is ill. They find an island that only has a single doctor, a witch who lives on top of a mountain. Luffy tries to take Nami to the top of the mountain, but is attacked by giant killer rabbits. At the same time, Walpol finds the island and attacks it, which makes the whole situation complicated for Luffy’s crew. Hopefully, they will be able to defeat Walpol again, and find a doctor to heal Nami from her illness.

Critical Evaluation:

 In this story, characters are portrayed as caricatures, with each showing very extreme characteristics that define them. The giants are shown as being very proud and not that smart, fighting for a hundred years because they argued over who caught a bigger monster. Likewise, Luffy is shown to be extremely impatient and straightforward, fighting those that oppose what he wants to do, such as Walpol or the guards at Drum Island. Only Princess Vivi is consistently shown to be intelligent and thoughtful, avoiding storms, worrying about her kingdom, and diagnosing Nami’s illness. These extreme characters add to the humorous tone of the story, and create comical situations. The tone is clearly supposed to be amusing, with giant goldfish and killer rabbits. This is highlighted not only by the extreme characters, but also by their reactions, with them arguing about what to do when Nami is sick, feeding her being the best answer, and other situations, with them never really acting as if they are in danger. This creates a safer feeling for the story, which allows the reader to enjoy the story for fun.

Readers Annotation:

Luffy and his crew take on some new challenges; including giant goldfish, a metal eating pirate, killer rabbits, and the common cold.

Book Talking Ideas:

• Talk about the humorous tone of the series. Look for ways the author emphasizes this in the book.
• Talk about what has happened before this book in the series. What do you think will happen in this book based on what has happened before?

Reading Level/Interest Age: 12-17

Challenge Issues:

• Some inappropriate humor, including mild suggestive comments.
• Some violence, but no blood.

Defense Collection:

• One Piece Seriew Review. http://fantasy-faction.com/2013/one-piece-manga-series-review.
• One Piece Manga. http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/one-piece/manga.
• Reconsideration Policy
• Freedom to Read Statement
• ALA Library Bill of Rights
• Springville Public Library Collection Development Policy
• The Library Director and designated staff actively evaluate and select materials. The Springville Public Library Board, acting under the authority given to it by Title 4, Chapter 6 of the Springville Municipal Code and Title 09 of the Utah State Code, has the ultimate responsibility for the determination of the policies for selection and acquisition of materials.
• Library materials are selected based on the following (not necessarily in order of priority):
• Local public demand and usage potential
• Popularity
• Subject coverage
• Relevance
• Accuracy and currency
• Presentation, readability and format
• Point of view (all sides)
• Cost
• Local connection
• Social values
• Collection balance
• To assess the item based on the above criteria, staff utilize:
• Nationally recognized and relevant pre-publication reviews
• Staff expertise
• Bestseller lists

Purpose in Collection:
One Piece is a continuing manga serial. It is a popular series and one that can be continually added to in the collection if it is liked. It is also humorous, which makes it a fun addition to the collection.