Book Giveaway | On Human Adoption

We’re excited to be giving away two copies of On Human Adoption by Dr Barbara Sumner to our GrownUps members!

To be in the draw, simply make sure you’re a GrownUps member, signed up to our newsletter, and fill in your details at the bottom of the page.

About On Human Adoption

An uncompromising work of narrative non-fiction on identity, law, and belonging

If you believe we all have the right to know where we come from, this book is for you.

On Human Adoption argues that adoption is not fate. It is a legal and ideological invention: a state-sanctioned system that severs ancestry, erases birthright, seals records and reconstructs identity.

Using New Zealand as a case study, the book examines how modern states manufacture and manage human identity. While adoption laws differ by country, their underlying logic is strikingly consistent.

Drawn from doctoral research, On Human Adoption sits at the intersection of critical analysis, investigative memoir, archival research, academic inquiry and extensive interviews to interrogate the social, personal, and legal architecture of adoption.

• Rigorously researched work of critical adoption studies grounded in lived experience.
• Combines investigative memoir with legal, archival and academic analysis.
• Uses New Zealand’s uninterrupted adoption regime as a rare international case study.
• Relevant to adopted people, first mothers, social workers, legal and health professionals, policymakers and researchers.
• Addresses contemporary debates on identity, citizenship, record access and state power.

About the Author

Dr Barbara Sumner is a New Zealand–based author, researcher and public speaker whose work examines adoption, identity and state power.

She holds a PhD from Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington and is the author of the investigative memoir Tree of Strangers (MUP, 2020) and the historical novel The Gallows Bird (Hardie Grant, 2024).

She is the founder of the widely read Substack’s Adoption Deconstructed. Her work spans memoir, fiction and scholarship.

You can read an exclusive article Barbara has written for GrownUps HERE

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Terms and conditions

1. 1. You must be a GrownUps member and subscribed to our newsletter to be eligible to enter.

   2. The competition closes on 10th June 2026. Winners will be notified via email by 11th June 2026.

   3. It is your responsibility to provide a correct New Zealand postal address for prize delivery. GrownUps is not responsible for prizes sent to incorrect addresses.

   4. Winners will be drawn at random by the GrownUps administration team.

   5. GrownUps employees and their immediate families are not eligible to enter.

   6. By entering, you agree to GrownUps using your name on social media as a winner of the competition.

   7. One entry per household.

   8. The prize is non-transferable and cannot be exchanged for cash or other items.

   9. You must reside in New Zealand, as the prize can only be delivered within New Zealand.

   10. You must be over 50 years of age to enter. Please ensure your membership details are up to date in your dashboard.