Ariel Sharon's son signs deal for memoir of his father

SYDNEY (Reuters Life!) - The youngest son of former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has signed a deal with publisher HarperCollins to write a memoir based on the private papers of his father who has been in a coma for over two years.

HarperCollins said it had acquired world rights to the book by Gilad Sharon, which will draw from his father's papers and correspondence for likely release in 2010.

Sharon, 80, who was prime minister from 2001-2006, has been comatose since suffering a stroke two years ago and is in a long-term care facility near Tel Aviv.

HarperCollins said Gilad Sharon acted as his father's close advisor both before and during his time as prime minister, sharing his thinking and witnessing the emotional and physical strain of leadership first hand.

"This book will paint a candid portrait, up close, of Ariel Sharon's thoughts and actions, as well as memorable portraits of other world leaders, both allies and antagonists," HarperCollins said in a statement.

Other leaders to be mentioned in the book, "Sharon: A Leader and a Father," will include President George W. Bush with whom he forged a warm relationship, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, and former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

Sharon, a former army general who led his troops in battles with Israel's Arab neighbours, alienated many of his supporters on the right in 2005 when he ordered the evacuation of troops and settlers from the Gaza strip after 38 years of occupation.

"Gilad Sharon's account of his father's extraordinary career -- a political life that is pivotal to the second half of the 20th century -- is going to be a fascinating document, and is the closest we have to an authorized biography," said Jonathan Burnham, a spokesman for News Corp. unit HarperCollins.

Sharon's eldest son, Omri, 43, went to prison in February this year after pleading guilty in 2005 to illegal fund-raising for his father's 1999 Likud party leadership campaign. His seven-month prison term was delayed due to his father's ill health and an appeal.