Kyle's Bed & Breakfast

by Greg Fox

Finally, the first volume of Kyle's Bed & Breakfast is available in print again, thanks to Sugar Maple Press. For those unfamiliar with the addictively fun-filled series, Kyle's B&B is a syndicated comic strip focused on the lives of a group of quirky, (and often hunky!), gay men living in a harbor town B&B in the northeastern USA. Closeted minor-league baseball player Brad, corporate shark Lance, gossip-loving fashionista Richard, troubled high-school senior Eduardo, and Kyle, the 30-something inn-keeper with a heart of gold who keeps all of these hot-shots in line. Romance... drama... topical issues... laugh-out-loud humor... sexiness...hot apple pie and some hot guys raiding the fridge in their briefs... this comic strip covers all the bases! And underlying it all is a warm message of hope. Included in this volume are the first 5 years of the comic strip, along with a previously-unpublished 2 episode story, and a detailed floor-by-floor "blueprint" layout of the B&B. When this book was originally published in 2004, it went on to become a Lambda Literary Award Finalist for "Best Humor Book" of the year. This new Sugar Maple Press edition features sharply improved graphics; the comic strip images are larger, with crisper & clearer delineation. Also restored are the individual episode numbers, something curiously lacking in the original edition. These days, Kyle's Bed & Breakfast has a vastly larger, worldwide readership, with an enormous online presence. The strip also went full-color a few years ago, unlike the early black & white episodes featured in this volume, (and those in the follow-up volume, "Kyle's Bed & A Second Bowl of Serial", also available from Sugar Maple Press). What fun it is to travel back and see how it all began, before the strip was in color, before the characters all knew each other. This is one B&B vacation you do NOT want to miss!

Genres: Graphic Novels, LGBT, Gay, Fiction, Queer, Comics

150 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2004

Reviews

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is written by a very dear friend of mine, so I admit, I'm probably biased. Even before this book came out, I had seen alot of his cartoons in many magazines. He's very talented, and I knew this. I had flipped through and read most of this book already, but until now I had never read it cover to cover. I'm so glad I finally read it!

This is the story of Kyle, who runs a Bed & Breakfast. It's fun that it takes place on Long Island, where I'm from, because of all the local references. We get to meet many guys who stay at the B&B, from the minor league baseball player who struggles w/ "coming out", a big-time businessman, an 18 year old who was thrown out of his house when his parent's found out he's gay, a guy who lives for the clubs, a single dad, etc. All the characters are so fleshed out and likeable...flaws and all, I feel like I want to drive over to Northport and go say hi!

I would definitely recommend this book! But, like I said, I've known Greg for 10 years, and I admit that might have affected my review. Oh, well. It is, what it is! I do hope you try it, though! :)

[Altivo Overo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bit of a period piece now, I guess, but sharply relevant satire on American gay men of 15 years ago or so. A lot of abrasive characters I had an instinctive dislike for, but as they developed many became more human and likable. Greg Fox is a good artist, even though the anatomy is a bit on the exaggerated side like a super-hero comic. I particularly enjoyed Delia, the (token) woman in the stories. She is a serious baseball fan, but otherwise the most practical and sensible one in the entire cast.

[Damien · Rating 2 out of 5]

Extremely cheesy, but occasionally has a good moment. Overly "liberal" in that it tries to be inclusive but ends up tokenizing its characters of color and still manages to stereotype them, even the Jewish best friend. Basically it just resembles The Broken Hearts Club but with a positive spin on all the situations; while this is not a bad thing, it is boring in the comics, perhaps even predictable.

[Gregg Hower · Rating 4 out of 5]

Light, fun collection of strips. With five regulars, and numerous other characters who pass through the bed and breakfast, these comics deal with love, breakups, the public closet (sports and showbiz), finding where you belong, and other themes. Based on this volume, that ends with a bit of the cliffhanger, I will continue with the series.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun comicstrip compilation of the life of Kyle and his guests at a Gay Long Island B&B that caters mostly to long-term guests. Each resident is a bit of an arch-type as one would expect in a comic strip but the drawings are hot, the stories topical and the "feel" exactly right for a mid 90's/early naughties North Shore gay B&B.

Having spent some time in Northport I felt right at home with Kyle and crew but the locale is really secondary to the interactions and the incidents.

I read and enjoyed it in pretty much one sitting and look forward to reading later installments.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

The concept of 5 gay guys living at a B&B is underwhelming. I can understand the historical significance of this comic in the time it was written, but with the power of hindsight it's basically a cheesy gay comic soap opera.

[Jdetrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful art, with likable characters.

[Natty Soltesz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this one afternoon...enjoyed it.