Trung Le Nguyen
Trung Le Nguyen, also known as Trungles, is a Vietnamese American cartoonist. He is best known as the author of the graphic novel The Magic Fish, published by Random House Graphic in 2020.
Biography
Early life and career
Trung Le Nguyen was born in a Vietnamese refugee camp somewhere in the Philippines Province of Palawan and moved to the United States as a child in 1992. His parents were Vietnamese boat people. Trung began drawing comics in middle school but gave up the pastime in college, stating, "I never really thought to make it a career. It always seemed like this fluffy way for me to pass the time". He graduated from Hamline University with a bachelor's degree in studio art with a minor in art history in 2012. Originally planning to pursue a career in arts administration, he instead chose to pursue a career in comics. Trung's art is noted for its use of traditional inking and penciling and references to Vietnamese imagery, shōjo manga, and classic children's literature. He cites Rose O'Neill, Heinrich Lefler, and Harry Clarke among his influences.In 2017, Trung was a jurist for the Ignatz Awards. Also in 2017 his coloring book Fauns & Fairies was published by Oni Press under their erotic comics imprint Limerence Press. In 2018, he was an artist on the Image Comics romance comics anthology Twisted Romance, written by Alex de Campi. In 2020, Random House Graphic published Trung's debut graphic novel The Magic Fish. The book, which follows a young Vietnamese gay immigrant and his parents who bond and learn English through fairy tale books, was inspired by Trung's upbringing.
In 2022, it was reported that Trung's second graphic novel titled Angelica And The Bear Prince would be published by Random House Graphic in 2025. In September 2025, the novel received a 100,000 print run, for a 7 October publication.