Rune: The Tale of a Thousand Faces

by Carlos Sánchez

Overview

Chiri is a fun-loving super cook looking for fresh adventures and ingredients, but her love of exploration has landed her in some serious magical trouble and she’s going to need all the help she can get to find home again.

Chiri and best friend Dai live in an orphanage right next to the deepest, darkest forest. On a scavenging mission to find some amazing new ingredients for her many culinary experiments, Chiri plunges both her and her best friend into the secret kingdom of Puddin’, a secret place plagued by the Thousand Faces Monster and inhabited by all sorts of magical people and critters. Befriending witches, bards, ogres and sorcerers, can our two protagonists make it home and more importantly, can they evade the darkness that has awoken on their arrival?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781838741211
Publisher:	Flying Eye Books Ltd.
Publication date:	06/04/2024
Pages:	144
Sales rank:	428,763
Product dimensions:	6.44(w) x 8.88(h) x 0.46(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Carlos Sánchez grew up, with a pencil in his hand, in Barcelona. When he was very young a comic fell into his hand and that changed his life forever. He studied Design in EINA, and a master in Creative Illustration in Bau. He loves to draw, read comics, eat cereal and play videogames. Nowadays, he works as a designer, illustrator and comic artist in Barcelona.

Editorial Reviews

03/18/2024

After fleeing from bullies at their orphanage in Little Valley, besties Chiri and Dai stumble through a portal to Puddin, a land filled with strange beings, magical objects, and a pervasive fear of the Shadow King. Upon befriending druid Sophie and Oko the Ogroid, Dai trains with Oko to become a swordsman while Chiri—who wears a hearing aid—realizes that her sign language skills double as wizard speech. As the tweens practice their new talents, the Shadow King prepares to escape Puddin, where he plans to wreak havoc in Little Valley and beyond. Spanish artist Sánchez utilizes vibrant primary colors and softly rounded Adventure Time–style artwork that features a kaleidoscope of oddities to evoke Alice in Wonderland vibes. The best friends’ sign language conversations are rendered in prominent yellow and blue speech bubbles, and Chiri’s way of expressing herself proves integral to the protagonists’ adventure. Nuanced explorations of friendship, resilience, and the discovery of one’s potential in the face of adversity add emotional depth to this sweet and charming fantasy graphic novel series opener. Chiri has red hair and pale skin; Dai wears glasses and has brown skin. Ages 8–up. (June)

Publishers Weekly

Shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize, 2025: Younger Readers Category

Rune will draw you right into its intricately contructed fantasy world of magicm wonder and quirky characters Come for the adventures, stay for the waffles. - Tim Probert, Lifghtfall

Softly rounded Adventure Time–style artwork that features a kaleidoscope of oddities to evoke Alice in Wonderland vibes ... Nuanced explorations of friendship, resilience, and the discovery of one’s potential in the face of adversity add emotional depth to this sweet and charming fantasy graphic novel series opener - Publisher's Weekly

This volume will make a great addition to any middle school library. - Lori Henderson, SLJ

Flying Eye is expanding its MG Comics offering with this fantasy about two friends who must find their way home from a land lost in time and shrouded in darkness, encountering druids, warriors and magical goats on the way. Features a deaf protagonist. - Charlotte Eyre, The Bookseller June Previews

The lively art’s myriad details reward close inspection. Many objects are covered in runes, and a chart in the back matter lets readers translate them. Sánchez uses a limited palette of muted blue, red, and yellow, and despite the ornate backgrounds, the art is easy to decipher. - Brigid Alverson, SLJ - Eight Fantasy-Focused Graphic Novels | Stellar Panels

This graphic novel is a cosy fantasy with rounded characters and an appealing washed out
pastel colour palette... The pacing of the story is heightened by the changing number of panels per page, something that certainly keeps you invested to the last page. Overall, a charming fantasy adventure. - Ruth Concannon, Inis 72

Readers who like quirky fantasies, including Lightfall by Tim Probert (who blurbs the book) will enjoy exploring the mysterious world of Rune. Notable for its inclusion of a Deaf character in a fantasy world, this is a strong addition to most graphic novel collections. - Jennifer Wharton, No Flying No Tights

Featured on the Young Maverick Graphic Novel Reading List - Texas Library Association

From the Publisher