“Lonely in Littelhaven” by Neil Holdsworth takes us back to the early 1960’s in North America as experienced by an Australian “innocent abroad”. The narrator is a mild-mannered, love-struck young man who meets some interesting characters during his 5 month stint in a small mid-western American town. The characters he meets provide an interesting contrast to the young man’s morality but at the end of the day this memoir probably tells us more about the narrator than any of the characters he describes.

It is essentially a love story and the means by which love can be maintained, even enhanced, despite separation. However the author interweaves his personal story with fictional "portraits" depicting the part that European refugees played in moulding the American character and culture inspired by the characters he has met and admired.

This book provides light entertainment for readers of any age with the occasional insight into the attitudes (and prices) of the 1960’s, and some reminders of the main political events of those times. It may even inspire those couples who find themselves apart to stay true to their belief in each other through life’s many distractions.