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The ex-president of France plans a memoir next month titled Diary of a Prisoner, detailing his experience endured behind bars.

The announcement was made less than two weeks following Sarkozy left prison while his appeal proceeds the court ruling related to criminal conspiracy regarding a scheme to secure presidential race money linked to the leadership of former Libyan leader.

Time in Custody: Solitary Musings

“Behind bars one sees little, with little to occupy time,” he writes in one passage, implying the memoir will focus on his musings during solitary confinement instead of wider commentary regarding the overcrowded and struggling jail system in France.

“Quiet is absent, which is missing in that facility, where noise is endless commotion,” he adds. “The racket persists relentlessly. However, akin to empty spaces, one’s inner world is fortified behind bars.”

Freedom Plea: Sharing the Struggle

While appealing for release, Sarkozy had appeared via screen from a room in prison, characterizing his incarceration as gruelling. He stated to the judge: “I must acknowledge the correctional officers, showing great humanity, easing this difficult experience manageable – as it truly is one.”

“I never imagined at this stage of life, I would end up incarcerated. It’s a trial I must endure. I confess it’s hard, extremely tough. It has an impact on any prisoner due to its intensity.”

First of Its Kind

The former president, who led the nation from 2007 to 2012, set a precedent as ex-leader from the EU and the first postwar leader of France to serve time in prison.

Prior to imprisonment he declared he planned to utilize the opportunity to compose an account.

Reading Material

It is not certain whether he had time to review and analyze the three books he brought with him: a life story of Jesus spanning two books and Alexandre Dumas’s novel the famous story, a plot where a blameless person is sentenced to jail then breaks out to exact retribution.

Life in Confinement

Sarkozy was placed secluded to protect him in a space roughly 100 square feet with his own shower and toilet at La Santé prison located in the capital. Guards occupied the next cell.

Sources mentioned that he consumed only yoghurts in prison worried that any food could have been tampered with. He had facilities to prepare his own meals yet he declined, based on unnamed sources. Not known is if he will detail his dietary choices.

Lawyer’s Statements

His attorney, who visited his client each day during the incarceration, told the release hearing he would be safer outside jail rather than in custody. “He has faced death threats, listened to yells after dark plus rapid actions in a neighbouring cell when a prisoner self-harmed.”

Legal Proceedings

His incarceration began on 21 October when a Paris court imposed a five-year sentence for criminal conspiracy over a scheme to acquire campaign funds for his presidential bid.

He maintains his innocence challenging the decision, and another court case set for next spring.