His paintings made news worldwide, but former US president George W. Bush has been working on another, highly personal project since leaving the White House.

He has quietly completed a biography of his father, former president George H.W. Bush.

Crown Publishers said the book, currently untitled, would be released on November 11. In 2010 Crown published the younger Bush’s million-selling memoir, Decision Points.

“George H.W. Bush is a great servant, statesman and father,” his son said in a statement. “I loved writing the story of his life and I hope others enjoy reading it.”

According to Crown, the book will cover the elder Bush’s whole life and his influence on his son, from George W.’s “childhood in West Texas to his early campaign trips with his father, and from his decision to go into politics to his own two-term presidency”.

The book will be “heartfelt, intimate, and illuminating”, Crown publisher Maya Mavjee said. “As the only father and son to each have served as president of the US since John and John Quincy Adams, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush occupy a unique position in history.

“George W. brings to vivid life his unique perspective of the personal qualities and principles that have animated George H. W. Bush’s extraordinary life of service to country and family.”

The relationship between the two presidents has long fascinated scholars, political insiders and the public. Many have speculated that the younger Bush felt competitive with his father, driven to surpass him and to gain his approval.

In a 2013 appearance on CBS This Morning, Bush said his father was a role model and that their relationship was based upon “love and admiration”.

Bush first thought of the book around 2010 and began writing it two years later, consulting widely with friends and family members, including his father.

The book is expected to be around 300 pages and Crown is planning a first printing of one million copies.