This might be a little off topic, but to me it feels like a lot of people are intimidated by classic books purely because of their age and reputation. There are hundreds of great classic books that are easy to read, funny, engaging and written in a style that won't have you reaching for your dictionary every five words. If you are not a frequent reader, then those are the type of classics I would recommend first. If you have read plenty of books, including a couple of classics and want to go for something that is a little bit more challenging, then there are a couple of other criteria to keep in mind. First, don't go for the oldest, largest book you can find first, especially if the book was not originally in English. Instead, pick something that is a little more recent and ease yourself into it first. You'll find that as your vocabulary grows, so will your enjoyment of the books. Put in a little effort and research the translations of the books you are interested in as well. There are plenty of non-English classics that has had a couple of translations over the years and some are better than others, so definitely look into that. Now, to (finally) answer your question, it is without a doubt War and Peace. I have read a lot of books in my life, including plenty of the classics, but there is just nothing about War and Peace that draws me to it.