British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has apologised and withdrawn a children’s book he wrote after it was criticised for causing offence to indigenous Australians. Oliver is among a long list of celebrities to have produced their own book for youngsters, but the Australian subplot in Oliver’s Billy And The Epic Escape was criticised for being damaging and disrespectful, the Guardian reported. It said the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Corporation blasted the book, which tells the story of a First Nations girl living in foster care, for contributing to the “erasure, trivialisation, and stereotyping of First Nations peoples and experiences ”.
In a statement, Oliver, 49, said: “I am devastated to have caused offence and apologise wholeheartedly. It was never my intention to misinterpret this deeply painful issue. “Together with my publishers we have decided to withdraw the book from sale.
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