Fungae

by Wojtek Wawszczyk, Tomasz Lew Leśniak (Artist)

A family pushes through nearly impenetrable physical and psychic terrain in a metaphorical parable of life in the 21st century.

A New York Public Library Best New Comic for Adults 2026

A family treks with purpose and tenacity through a dense, primeval jungle, searching for…a respite…a goal…a home. They have been trekking for a long, long time. The jungle is a wasteland of viscera, grime, and rot. Within every darkened crevice is something waiting to kill, unless they kill first.

Fungae is a story of struggle, of violence, of cruelty, but it is foremost a story of family, of fathers wanting their sons to be strong, of mothers wanting to nurture them in a hostile world. An electric collaboration between Polish animators and cartoonists Wojtek Wawszczyk and Tomasz Lew Lesniak propel this thrilling and horrifying survival tale. Lesniak’s textured and animated style conveys absurdist and intimately human moments, flickering like embers against the thickening miasma of abject privation. This is a story of the obduracy and fragility of human will. Fungae will grow on you.

Full color illustrations throughout

Genres: Comics

416 pages, Paperback

Published May 19, 2026

Reviews

[Clint · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fungal swamp setting is dark, dire, gloopy, and grotty, which sets a lot of the tone, but then the character art and plotting has a goofy (complimentary) vibe that seems borrowed from zany old alt comix. It’s an unexpected mix, but one that works well in contrast; lots of big mesmerizing splash pages plus the episodic nature of their grueling trials through a hostile environment made its 300+ pages fly by quickly.

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fungae is one the most impressive graphic novels I've read in a while. I had no previous familiarity with either of the creators, but publisher Fantagraphics Underground has managed to create enough buzz around this title to make me seek it out.

The authors drop the reader right into the middle of the action, and provide almost no worldbuilding to explain what's going on. The reader is simply presented with a small family (mother, father, and son) who laboriously navigate a dense and dangerous jungle in search of a physical goal. What they might find once they reach their goal is not further explained, so the reader has to take it on faith that arriving there will somehow improve the family's fortunes.

This enigmatic plot is beautifully enhanced by Tomasz Lew Lesniak's cartoony but fantastically layered depiction of the near-impenetrable terrain that the family navigates, and the many threatening creatures that they encounter along the way. Virtually everything visible in each panel is potentially deadly, and the the cartoonish depictions of the family provide an effective contrast that allows Fungae to rise above mere menace and achieve the status of a powerful narrative of human perseverance.

[Jim N · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fungae was absolutely brilliant, the best graphic novel I’ve read in years, It’s a rich, visceral, visual experience, at turns moving, unsettling and horrifying but always mesmerizing. The artwork by Tomasz Lew Leśniak is incredible!
Highly, highly recommended.