Theory in any discipline can be extremely difficult to grasp.  Bring in postmodernism and many students are completely lost.  This book helped me understand the postmodernism movement when I was first introduced to historical and archaeological theory.  Appignanesi and Garratt answer such questions as, what on earth is false postmodernism?  Eclectic postmodernism?  The Anthropic Principle?  Introducing Postmodernism is a great companion to any theoretical textbook/compilation of works for an undergraduate theory class.  I found myself pulling out this book even for my graduate anthropology theory class.

Through cartoons and brief but concise explanations, the authors trace the complexities of the postmodernist movement in art, theory, science, and history.  Reading original texts by Derrida and Levi-Strauss can bring on massive headaches—this book, however, breaks down such authors’ concepts into something understandable.  After reading about major postmodernists and their thoughts brought to life via drawings, I was then able to tackle some of their writing.  Although, Derrida still has me scratching my head.