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The ex-president of France will soon publish a personal account in the coming weeks called A Prisoner’s Diary, chronicling his time endured in custody.

The announcement came just 11 days following the former president was released while he contests the court ruling on charges of unlawful coordination connected to efforts to obtain election campaign funds provided by the leadership of the late Libyan dictator.

Life Behind Bars: Personal Reflections

“In prison one sees little, and activities are scarce,” he writes in an extract, suggesting the book centers around his thoughts while in isolation rather than wider commentary on the packed and crisis-hit French prison system.

“Silence escapes me, not present in La Santé, where one hears endless commotion,” he states. “The racket persists relentlessly. But, just like the desert, inner life is fortified behind bars.”

Court Appearance: Sharing the Struggle

At his release request hearing, the former leader was present remotely from inside the facility, describing his time inside as exhausting. He expressed in court: “I must acknowledge to all the prison staff, who are exceptionally humane, and who helped make this difficult experience tolerable – since it’s deeply troubling.”

“I never imagined that in my seventies, I would end up incarcerated. It’s a hardship I must endure. I admit it’s difficult, deeply straining. It affects one all who experience it as it’s exhausting.”

Historical Context

The former president, the ex-head of state between 2007 and 2012, set a precedent as former head of an EU country and the first leader since WWII of France to experience jail.

Before entering jail he declared he would use his time to write a book.

Reading Material

It is not certain if he found the opportunity to review and analyze the texts he took into prison: a two-volume biography of Jesus and Alexandre Dumas’s novel The Count of Monte Cristo, where an innocent man is imprisoned then breaks out to seek vengeance.

Daily Reality

He was held secluded to protect him in a room approximately nine square meters with his own shower and toilet in the Paris jail located in the capital. Security personnel occupied the next cell.

Sources mentioned that he had eaten only yoghurts during his stay because he feared any food could have been tampered with. Although he had access to prepare his own meals yet he declined, as per accounts. Not known is if the memoir includes his dietary choices.

Defense Viewpoint

Sarkozy’s lawyer, who visited his client every day throughout the jail term, stated during proceedings he would be safer outside jail rather than in custody. “He received threats against his life, listened to yells at night and emergency responses in an adjacent room during an inmate’s self-injury.”

Case Background

His incarceration began in late October when a French court imposed a five-year sentence for illegal collaboration over a scheme to obtain political donations during his election campaign.

He maintains his innocence and is contesting the ruling, and a fresh trial set for next spring.