Ideal reader: Undergraduates and seminary students as well as curious pastors and lay leaders who want to think intelligently about postmodernism and its consequences for the contemporary church.

Rate the book from 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent) on these criteria: Practicality (4); Insight (5); Theological Depth (5); Readability (4).

Core message: A self-described "professional philosopher," author Heath White is a 30-something university professor of philosophy who clearly speaks with authority to the issue of postmodernism and its role as an influencer of both the church and culture at large. Among White's more salient points is his observation that postmodernism as a philosophy is here to stay and that it is the pressing responsibility of church leaders to address it with an attitude of faith and love rather than one of fear and loathing.

Summary: The book thoughtfully compares and contrasts the three major worldviews of premodernism, modernism and postmodernism. Premoderns do not accept that anything true and knowable is something people can reach consensus about. Meanwhile, moderns reject that there is no present consensus, nor foreseeable consensus, on the big questions of human life. Finally, postmoderns dismiss the idea that the big questions of human life have answers that are true and knowable.

Though White states his primary purpose for the book is to describe and explain postmodernism, he admits that a secondary goal is to offer some advice to fellow believers about how to respond to some of the challenges postmodernism presents.

In the book's opening chapter, titled "Why Read About Postmodernism?" White suggests that the root of the various reasons to learn about postmodernism is "the culture is changing, and postmodern ideas are driving the change."

White identifies three main concerns that thoughtful Christians have when they confront postmodernism and consequently addresses the corresponding reasons to learn about it. For those with a moral concern, learning about postmodernism teaches them how to combat it. For those with an evangelistic concern, learning about postmodernism helps them evangelize the culture. And for those with a theological concern, learning about postmodernism helps them rediscover what Christianity is all about, according to White.

The insightful questions for further thought after each chapter and suggestions for further reading provide a template for readers beyond the text. Regardless of where one is on the theological continuum, Postmodernism 101 offers readers thought-provoking analysis of this worldview and attempts to provide useful wisdom for the inquiring minds among us.

Quote: "Postmoderns are as anti-authority as any modern, perhaps more so. But they lost the faith that sustained modernism, the faith that human reason could deliver answers and find solutions to the great questions of human life."

Reviewer: Sean Fowlds