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Nicolas Sarkozy will soon publish a book this autumn titled A Prisoner’s Diary, detailing the period endured behind bars.

The revelation emerged shortly after the ex-leader left prison as his appeal proceeds the court ruling related to criminal conspiracy regarding a scheme to obtain presidential race money from the government of the late Libyan dictator.

Prison Experience: Inner Thoughts

“Behind bars one sees little, with little to occupy time,” he writes in an extract, suggesting the memoir is more about his thoughts while in seclusion as opposed to wider commentary on the packed and crisis-hit jail system in France.

“I forget silence, which doesn’t exist in that facility, where one hears endless commotion,” he adds. “The racket is alas constant. However, akin to empty spaces, personal reflection is strengthened in prison.”

Release Hearing: Sharing the Struggle

At his release request hearing, he participated via screen from his cell, characterizing his incarceration as gruelling. He had told the court: “I must acknowledge those working in the jail, displaying remarkable compassion, easing this ordeal tolerable – since it’s deeply troubling.”

“I didn’t expect at this stage of life, I would end up incarcerated. It’s a trial forced upon me. It’s challenging, I acknowledge, it’s very hard. It leaves a mark all who experience it due to its intensity.”

First of Its Kind

Sarkozy, who led the nation for a five-year term, was the first ex-leader of an EU country and the first postwar leader from France to serve time in prison.

Ahead of his incarceration he declared he intended to spend the period to compose an account.

Books in Prison

Unconfirmed is if he found the opportunity to go through the texts he had in his cell: a biography of Jesus in two parts and Alexandre Dumas’s novel The Count of Monte Cristo, in which an innocent man is imprisoned later flees to exact retribution.

Life in Confinement

The former leader was held secluded due to safety concerns in a room of about nine sq metres featuring a personal bathroom in the Paris jail in Paris. Security personnel occupied the next cell.

It was stated that he had eaten only yoghurts while inside due to concerns prison cuisine may have been contaminated. Although he had access to prepare his own meals but refused this, based on unnamed sources. Not known is if the memoir includes his dietary choices.

Legal Perspective

The legal representative, Christophe Ingrain every day throughout the jail term, stated during proceedings security would be better outside jail than inside. “There were menacing messages, has heard screaming at night and the urgent intervention in a neighbouring cell when a prisoner self-harmed.”

Case Background

He entered custody last month after a French court gave him a five-year sentence on conspiracy charges over a scheme to secure campaign funds for his presidential bid.

He disputes the charges challenging the decision, with a new trial is scheduled for the coming spring.