Supporters queued down the street as former French President Nicolas Sarkozy held a signing for his book 'Diary of a Prisoner', which documents his 20-day stint in jail, at a Paris bookstore on Wednesday.

Sarkozy was seen being escorted through the crowd and into the building as readers waited to get their hands on the memoir on its release day.

In the book, he describes prison as a noisy, harsh “all-grey” world of “inhuman violence" and offers political advice about how his conservative party should appeal to far-right voters.

In 'Diary of a Prisoner,' the 70-year-old says his own tough-on-crime stance has taken on a new perspective as he recounts the uncommon turn in his life after being found guilty of criminal association in financing his winning 2007 campaign with funds from Libya.

The court sentenced him in September to five years in prison, a ruling he appealed. He was granted release under judicial supervision after 20 days behind bars.

Sarkozy wrote that his cell looked like a “cheap hotel, except for the armored door and the bars,” with a hard mattress, a plastic-like pillow and a shower that produced only a thin stream of water.

AP video shot by Oleg Cetinic