‘War and Peace’ is actually very easy to read. The only difficulties are the (to non Russians) foreign sounding names and length. And the historical philosophy chapters can easily be removed to make for a concise abridged version.
I read it last year in the Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky translation. I had read a severely abridged version in High School decades ago. I found the complete version fascinating. Yes, it is easy to abridge by leaving out the many pages of the characters' thoughts and Tolstoy's commentary on history. I found most of it fascinating. I loved Tolstoy's imagery, such as when he described Moscow at the time of the French invasion as a dead beehive.
I decided to read the complete novel after watching the Russian film version again. I was struck by how the story did not seem to have a definite beginning. It just sort of crept up with a couple of parties that introduced various people. It is not obvious who the main characters are going to be at the outset. I wondered if the book would be the same way, and found that it pretty much was.
I recommend that anyone who has not read it see the Russian film first (in the widescreen version in 4 parts). Unless one is quite familiar with early 19th century fashions, military formations, uniforms, warfare, etc, it is almost impossible to properly imagine the settings and characters of the novel. The movie is quite faithful to the novel, but the novel is so much more detailed.