On any given book on Africa chances are that the cover features a red sunset or an acacia tree or both. Michael Silverberg took a look at why:

• Cover designers aren’t necessarily worldly in their outlook and may not know a lot about African countries.
• In such circumstances it is safer to fall back upon existing clichés.
• When there are exceptions to this cover design it is usually because the author is female or Muslim – and then clichés for female or Muslim authored books are used on the cover instead.
• Someday there’ll be a bestselling book on Africa that won’t resort to this trope for its cover. This bestseller’s cover will then become the new cliché.

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Source: Quartz