Deficient

2026 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards Gold Medal Winner
A BookLife Editor’s Pick

Alé Aragón isn’t like the other kids at school. He can’t fly, read minds, or turn invisible like the genetically accelerated majority. As a powerless Deficient, Alé’s reality is one of constant ridicule—tormented by bullies, scorned by his brothers, and barely tolerated by his father. His greatest refuge is his best friend, Yalamba, an outspoken artist whose drawings come to life.

But when Yalamba vanishes in an ability-related hate crime, Alé is the prime suspect. Desperate to find her and clear his name, he teams up with fellow outcasts to uncover the truth. As they dig deeper, they realize Yalamba’s disappearance is linked to a series of unsolved murders targeting the extraordinarily gifted.

With danger closing in, Alé must confront his deepest fears and insecurities to solve the mystery and rescue Yalamba before it’s too late. And he’ll have to do it all without an ability of his own.