The Midnight Children

The steady beat of killing machines, blood gutters, lung buckets, and other accoutrements of turning mooing cows into processed meat are a constant theme and presence, graphically and emotionally described. Lots of details about the Hunter's weapons, strategies, and how he plans to use them, leading up to how he actually does. In lesser violence, a bully about to spit in his victim's mouth is foiled by rock-throwing kids. Bullies abuse Ravani physically and emotionally, and make him destroy his beloved birdhouses, in which birds and their nestlings are living. In the past, several of one kid's siblings were miscarried or stillborn, so he's been to lots of funerals, while another kid is grieving for her deceased mom.

Two 12-year-olds share a first kiss, which is fleeting but important.

Occasional "damn!", "sweet Jesus!", "heckuva." A bullying kid tells his fearful friend, "Don't be such a girl." A female character who takes offense at this looks at his belongings and says, "I wish I had to pee." Snarky references to pant-peeing and bed-wetting. A comic performance involves the sad tale of a blimp emptying its toilet on the speaker's bakery, resulting in "Poopoo in my porridge. Le crap in my croissants." "You'd be surprised," another character observes, "at how many situations a kid pooping their pants can get you out of."

An adult character smokes cigarettes, not too attractively.