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Nicolas Sarkozy is preparing a book this autumn called A Prisoner’s Diary, detailing the period spent in jail.

The announcement was made less than two weeks after Sarkozy left prison as his appeal proceeds his conviction on charges of illegal collaboration in a case to secure election campaign funds provided by the leadership of the late Libyan dictator.

Life Behind Bars: Personal Reflections

“Behind bars there is nothing to see, and nothing to do,” he notes in an extract, implying the memoir centers around his musings while in isolation instead of wider commentary of the strained and troubled jail system in France.

“I forget silence, which doesn’t exist in that facility, where there is endless commotion,” he states. “The racket unfortunately never stops. But, just like the desert, inner life grows stronger in prison.”

Release Hearing: Describing the Ordeal

During his plea for freedom, the former leader was present via screen from his cell, characterizing his incarceration as draining. He expressed in court: “I want to pay tribute to all the prison staff, who are exceptionally humane, and who have made this difficult experience manageable – as it truly is one.”

“It never crossed my mind at this stage of life, I’d find myself behind bars. It’s a hardship that has been imposed on me. It’s challenging, I acknowledge, extremely tough. It has an impact all who experience it as it’s exhausting.”

Unprecedented Situation

He, who served as France’s president between 2007 and 2012, set a precedent as past president in the European Union and the initial post-WWII figure from France to serve time in prison.

Ahead of his incarceration he declared he planned to utilize the opportunity to write a book.

Reading Material

Unconfirmed is did he manage to read and critique the volumes he brought with him: a two-volume biography of Jesus together with Dumas’s work the classic tale, a plot where a wrongfully accused individual is imprisoned later flees to seek vengeance.

Daily Reality

The former leader was held in isolation for his own security in a room approximately nine square meters with his own shower and toilet at La Santé prison in Paris. Guards were stationed in an adjacent room.

Reports indicated that he consumed only yoghurts during his stay due to concerns prison cuisine may have been contaminated. Although he had access for self-catering but refused this, as per accounts. Unclear remains if the memoir includes meals during incarceration.

Defense Viewpoint

The legal representative, Christophe Ingrain each day throughout the jail term, informed the court his safety would improve out of prison rather than in custody. “There were threats against his life, heard shouts after dark and the urgent intervention in a neighbouring cell during an inmate’s self-injury.”

Case Background

Sarkozy went to prison on 21 October following the judiciary gave him a five-year sentence for illegal collaboration in connection with efforts to secure political donations during his election campaign.

He maintains his innocence challenging the decision, and another court case is scheduled for early next year.