Theo, once the eponymous happy baby, but later an orphan in foster care and now a grown man living in California, is haunted by memories of his past. Wanting to understand the complex tangle of love, violence and abuse that has shaped his life and characterized his relationships, Theo returns to Chicago, where he lived as a troubled adolescent, to track down an old girlfriend.
Told in reverse order, Happy Baby is an edgy and powerful novel, disquieting in its portrayal of a life slowly yet systematically disintegrating. It is also a rawly convincing reminder that in real life, some stories begin - but don't necessarily end - happily ever after.