Hugo began planning a major novel about social misery and injustice as early as the 1830s , but it would take a full 17 years for `` Les Misérables '' to be realized and finally published in 1862 .
Hugo began planning a major novel about social misery and injustice as early as the 1830s , but it would take a full 17 years for `` Les Misérables '' , to be realized and finally published in 1862 .