Originally published in French as Le Cornet acoustique"--T.p. verso. "Translation c1976 Leonora Carrington ; introduction c1991 Helen Byatt"--T.p. verso.

92-year-old Marian Leatherby is given a hearing trumpet, then discovers that what her family is saying is that she is to be committed to an institution where the buildings are shaped like birthday cakes and igloos and the gateway to the underworld is open.