The book does a very good job at explaining the intricate history and structure of JSF framework, particularly regarding the CDI aspects. So definitely I would recommend it as an introduction to JSF.
However, I shake in terror at the idea of having to use JSF to develop font end application. The whole EL stuff reminds me of the days I have wasted trying to make JSTL tag library code work which fails silently... and JEE CDI seems to me another "magic under the hood" that becomes quite impossible to debug once anything goes wrong.
Besides, any attempt to write anything dynamic in a XML-like fashion should be straight away punished with 25 lashes on the back bottom. And any attempt to build complex expressions in a xhtml page using a combination of {, #, :, . , not validated by a compiler, is bound only to waste your life troubleshooting.
So, the learning curve is steep and the ways you can break the structure and waste days without any progress, infinite. It's a pity that frameworks like Vaadin don't get much attention and investment from big companies...
IMHO the root issue is that anybody with 2 hands and without at least a PhD in Mathematics can hack together a makeshift framework - glue, duct tape and some strings - and, if he hits the right market at the right time, find people who adopt it - for lack of a better alternative.
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