We've got your back. With the Tough-O-Meter, you'll know whether to bring extra layers or Swiss army knives as you summit the literary mountain. (10 = Toughest)
(5) Tree Line
Sure Sister Carrie might have you occasionally reaching for the old dictionary to look up a word like hornswoggled, and the narrator's philosophical digressions may throw out a few ideas that slow down your reading a bit and leave your brain momentarily twisted up, but none of this should keep you from getting a fairly good grasp of what's going on in this story.