The documentation for netatalk-1.5 is arranged as follows:

INSTALL - generic instructions for compiling and installing programs.
doc/INSTALL - netatalk specific installation instructions.
doc/CONFIGURE - how to set up the configuration files
doc/README.xxxx - additional instructions for various operating systems.

This should be all you need to get netatalk running.

Additional information for developers is in doc/DEVELOPER

        - The Netatalk Team