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Nicolas Sarkozy plans a personal account in the coming weeks titled Notes from a Cell, chronicling his experience served in custody.

The announcement was made just 11 days after the former president left prison as his appeal proceeds his conviction for illegal collaboration connected to efforts to acquire election campaign funds linked to the leadership of the late Libyan dictator.

Prison Experience: Personal Reflections

“In prison visibility is limited, and nothing to do,” he writes in an extract, implying the memoir is more about his musings while in isolation as opposed to wider commentary regarding the overcrowded and crisis-hit jail system in France.

“I forget silence, which is missing in La Santé, where noise is a lot to hear,” he continues. “The din is alas constant. But, just like the desert, one’s inner world grows stronger behind bars.”

Court Appearance: Recounting the Hardship

During his plea for freedom, Sarkozy participated via screen from a room in prison, describing his time inside as gruelling. He stated to the judge: “I must acknowledge the correctional officers, showing great humanity, easing this nightmare bearable – as it truly is one.”

“It never crossed my mind at this stage of life, I’d be in prison. It’s a trial I must endure. I confess it’s hard, deeply straining. It has an impact on any prisoner because it’s gruelling.”

Unprecedented Situation

He, the ex-head of state for a five-year term, was the first ex-leader from the EU and the first postwar leader of France to serve time in prison.

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

Reading Material

Unconfirmed is whether he had time to read and critique the texts he brought with him: a life story of Jesus spanning two books plus the novel by Dumas The Count of Monte Cristo, in which an innocent man is imprisoned but escapes to take revenge.

Prison Conditions

Sarkozy was held secluded to protect him in a space approximately nine square meters including private facilities in the Paris jail in Paris. Guards occupied a neighbouring cell.

Reports indicated that he consumed solely dairy snacks during his stay because he feared prison cuisine could have been tampered with. Options were available to cook for himself but he turned this down, as per accounts. Not known is whether Sarkozy will write about meals during incarceration.

Legal Perspective

Sarkozy’s lawyer, who visited his client daily during the incarceration, informed the court he would be safer released than inside. “There were menacing messages, listened to yells at night and the urgent intervention in an adjacent room when a prisoner self-harmed.”

Charges and Sentence

Sarkozy went to prison on 21 October when a Paris court gave him five years in prison for criminal conspiracy in connection with efforts to acquire political donations for his 2007 presidential race.

He disputes the charges challenging the decision, with a new trial set for early next year.