Our Dragon doesn't eat the girls he takes, no matter what stories they tell outside our valley. We hear them sometimes, from travelers passing through.”
-- Agnieszka (chapter 1)

Importance: These opening lines set the tone for something that seems terrible, but is not really as bad as it seems. Agnieszka and the other girls her age are preparing to be considered by the lord, called the Dragon, for a 10-year term in his tower. No one knows what really happens to the girls, except that they do leave after their term, apparently unharmed and with money for a dowry. The girls never remain in the valley.

He roared at me furiously for ten minutes after he finally managed to put out the sulky and determined fire, calling me a witless muttonheaded spawn of pig farmers – 'My father's a woodcutter,' I said – 'of axe-swinging lummocks!' he snarled.”
-- Agnieszka (chapter 4)

Importance: This is one of several humorous...