Most of my own work is in meta-analysis and I bought the book exclusively for this content and not information on decision analysis and cost-effectiveness analysis. I do not mean to minimize the importance of the latter but rather point out my own narrow interest in the Petitti text.

The book is well written and concise. Petitti "cuts to the chase" explaining the theory underlying meta-analytic methods and provides many useful examples from the medical literature. The text is easy to follow, understandable and well balanced. A thorough reading should leave the reader well prepared for further exploration of applied meta-analysis as well as capable of articulating its strengths, weaknesses and future direction.

Overall, Petitti's text is an excellent place to start for those interested in learning the fundamentals of "research synthesis". The book is also an extremely handy references for the more experienced practitioner. I highly recommend it.