He tackled the project with gusto, working in the mornings after breakfast or sometimes when he simply felt in the mood. By the hour he dictated his thoughts and memories to a whirring tape recorder. When he was done, Egypt's Anwar Sadat had written a revealing autobiography, In Search of Identity, that presents a fresh, distinctive and certainly intimate view of a leader who is at the center of the world's attention and still making history as he writes. TIME'S exclusive six-page excerpt, compiled by World Editor John Elson, is taken from the book, which will be published in April by Harper & Row.

Writing the book was Sadat's idea, according to Michael Bessie, who edited the transcripts for Harper. Says Bessie: "Sadat felt that through the telling of his own story, which was such a part of recent history, he could tell the story of Egypt as a modern nation. And because he saw Egypt as one of the most influential countries in the Arab world, he hoped that in telling of her hopes for peace he could influence peace plans in the Middle East."

His autobiography is far from Sadat's first brush with the literary world. In the 1930s he began writing by turning out manifestoes for anti-British underground organizations. Jailed in 1942-44 for subversive activities, he wrote an unpublished political novel called Prince of the Island. After the coup that toppled King Farouk in 1952, Sadat produced three books on the revolution and also served as an editor for political newspapers.

While recounting the story of his life, Sadat got some help from a professional: Rashad Rushdi, one of Egypt's leading playwrights, who moonlights as cultural counselor to the President. But Sadat needed no aid, and used no notes, to prod his memory. The flow was voluminous. Reports TIME'S Cairo bureau chief Wilton Wynn: "Sadat loves to talk and dictating to cassettes comes easily for him." The Egyptian leader's love of language -- and the intensity of his commitment for peace -- rings clearly through his prose. Nor can he be accused of profiteering from his years as a head of state. All proceeds from In Search of Identity will go to Mit Abu el Kom, Sadat's childhood village.

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