Novelist recounts a Czech doctor's life as a lion hunter in Africa

Author Formánek describes the life of a fictional character named Zenkl in his new novel, Lovec lvů.

The story follows Zenkl, a man inspired by the real life of doctor Zdeněk Cakl, who lived from 1912 to 1996. The narrative traces his journey from medical work in Korea and Vietnam to the African countryside, where he established a life in a provincial hospital.

The book portrays Zenkl as both a surgeon for local people and a hunter who protects communities by removing dangerous predators from the wilderness. Formánek weaves together historical events from the 1940s to the present day, exploring how these men balanced their professional duties with their personal relationships with wives and children. The author includes actual correspondence between the figures to ground the fictional narrative in real human experiences.