“I have been afraid of putting air in a tire ever since I saw a tractor tire blow up and throw Newt Hardbine's father over the top of the Standard Oil sign. I'm not lying. He got stuck up there.”
What is the significance of the first lines in the novel?
A. to explain Missy's phobia of tractors
B. to add an element of slapstick humor
C. to establish a folksy, humorous tone
D. to show Newt Hardbine's incompetence as a mechanic
