What a great novel. I was worried about trying to read it 40 years after I first bought and read it. However, Tristan and the Classics YouTube channel gave me the encouraging push I needed to pull it back out for a second reading. I wouldn't say it was an "easy" read, but -- oh my goodness -- was it ever so good! It has been many years since I have read classic literature. The one standout difference is that reading a book like this made me think. I mean, reading Hugo put my mind to work, which felt enriching and satisfying.
The first page had me worried that I wouldn't be able to concentrate enough to read it. I was shocked when I looked at the clock and realized I had read straight through it for 3 hours! Took a lot of notes and learned a great deal about Paris in that time period. Greatly enjoyed it and was just as moved emotionally (more so, even) than I had been after reading it 40 years ago.
The Walter Cobb translation is my favorite. Some of the recent translations seemed overly concerned with flowery and politically-correct verbiage. I love this version the best. An excellent treatise on human nature.