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Nicolas Sarkozy will soon publish a book next month titled Diary of a Prisoner, detailing his experience endured in custody.

The announcement was made shortly following the former president was released as his appeal proceeds his conviction related to criminal conspiracy in a case to acquire political financing linked to the government of former Libyan leader.

Time in Custody: Inner Thoughts

“In prison there is nothing to see, and nothing to do,” he reflects in a preview, suggesting the book is more about his reflections while in isolation as opposed to wider commentary of the overcrowded and struggling correctional facilities in the country.

“Quiet is absent, not present in La Santé, where there is constant sound,” he states. “The din persists relentlessly. But, just like the desert, personal reflection grows stronger while incarcerated.”

Release Hearing: Recounting the Hardship

At his release request hearing, the former leader was present via screen from inside the facility, characterizing his incarceration as gruelling. He expressed in court: “I want to pay tribute to all the prison staff, who are exceptionally humane, and who helped make this ordeal manageable – because it is a nightmare.”

“I didn’t expect that at 70 years of age, I would end up incarcerated. It’s a hardship that has been imposed on me. It’s challenging, I acknowledge, it’s very hard. It affects one on any prisoner as it’s exhausting.”

First of Its Kind

He, who led the nation for a five-year term, was the first former head of an EU country and the first postwar leader from France to be incarcerated.

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

Cell Library

It remains unclear if he found the opportunity to read and critique the three books he had in his cell: a two-volume biography of Jesus together with Dumas’s work the classic tale, where a wrongfully accused individual ends up incarcerated but escapes to exact retribution.

Life in Confinement

He was held in isolation to protect him in a room approximately nine square meters featuring a personal bathroom at the correctional facility in the city. Guards occupied a neighbouring cell.

Reports indicated that he had eaten just yogurt in prison because he feared any food may have been contaminated. Although he had access for self-catering but he turned this down, according to reports. It is uncertain if the memoir includes his dietary choices.

Legal Perspective

His attorney, who saw him regularly daily while he was in prison, stated during proceedings his safety would improve out of prison compared to inside. “He received death threats, listened to yells after dark and the urgent intervention in an adjacent room when a prisoner self-harmed.”

Case Background

He entered custody in late October when a French court imposed a half-decade term for illegal collaboration in connection with efforts to secure election financing for his presidential bid.

He denies wrongdoing challenging the decision, with a new trial is scheduled for early next year.