The LIT method has allowed ab initio calculations of electroweak cross
sections in light nuclear systems. This review presents a description of the
method from both a general and a more technical point of view, as well as a
summary of the results obtained by its application. The remarkable features of
the LIT approach, which make it particularly efficient in dealing with a
general reaction involving continuum states, are underlined. Emphasis is given
on the results obtained for electroweak cross sections of few--nucleon systems.
Their implications for the present understanding of microscopic nuclear
dynamics are discussed.Comment: 83 pages, 31 figures. Topical review. Corrected typo