Step 1 : Introduction to the question "6. This novel can be difficult for English-speakers to read because of the structure and usage of the characters' Russian names. Which lengthy novel set during the Napoleonic Wars can be a literary nemesis?"
...1. War and Peace 2. All Quiet on the Western Front 3. The Fountainhead 4. The Sun Also Rises Leo Tolstoy's "War and Peace" was published in 1869 after first being featured in serialized form in a magazine. It dealt with the impact of Napoleon's invasion of Russia, combining both history and fiction. At well over 1,000 pages, its length makes it a literary nemesis, as does the use of various forms of the Russian names. Additionally, the original Russian version contained passages in French, and some of the English translations have kept the French portions, making it difficult to read if one's knowledge of French is limited to "croissant".
