The book presents the classical theory of semisimple rings from a modern, category-theoretic point of view. Examples from algebra are used to motivate the abstract language of category theory, which then provides a framework for the study of rings and modules, culminating in the Wedderburn–Artin classification of semisimple rings. In the last part of the book, readers are gently introduced to related topics such as tensor products, exchange modules and C*-algebras. As a final flourish, Rickart’s theorem on group rings ties a number of these topics together. Each chapter ends with a selection of exercises of varying difficulty, and readers interested in the history of mathematics will find biographical sketches of important figures scattered throughout the text.

Assuming previous knowledge in linear and basic abstract algebra, this book can serve as a textbook for a course in algebra, providing students with valuable early exposure to category theory.