One Piece is a fast-paced adventurous voyage of the imagination. Oda’s vivid illustrations of his unique characters and setting bring the story to life, and that story is told beautifully. The narrative speaks to the power of hope and the ability of an individual to never give up in the quest to achieve their dreams, even if those dreams may seem out of their reach. The book’s main character, Luffy, longs to be a pirate, though everyone tells him that he is too young to do so, and he’s never been on the seas before. He is surrounded by a cast of other characters with dreams of their own, who he encourages even as he embarks on his own quest. The swashbuckling drama ranges from humorous antics to serious adventure, but even in the darkest portions of the book, Luffy’s positive vibe holds steady. One Piece is the best-selling manga series of all time, and it’s easy to see why if the remainder of the series are like this treasure of a first book.

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language: None

Violence/Gore: A few verbal threats; characters threaten each other with guns; characters hit each other a few times; report of an execution; a character stabs himself to prove a point; report of a murder; a few instances of minor property damage; a few fights with minor injury; a few fights in which characters are wounded and killed with minimal blood illustrated; an adult tries to drown a child; a character’s arm is severed by a monster, and this is illustrated, but with minimal blood; a character is killed with an axe, and some blood is illustrated; a body is illustrated laid out after an accidental death.

Sex/Nudity: A young teen girl mentions that she is developing breasts (factual, not a sexual, conversation).

Mature Subject Matter:

Capital punishment, death (friend, reported); piracy.

Alcohol/Drug Use:

Adult drink grog and smoke cigarettes.