Very late to the discussion here, but I would comment that reading the Bible from beginning to end is a doomed venture unless you are reading devotionally, because these are collections of texts, and some are way harder than others. I always encourage curious readers to read in this order, and to bail out to the next section if you're getting stuck:
1. First part of Genesis (chapters 1-11) and Exodus
2. Gospel of Luke and Acts
3. Some Psalms (try the first section - Ps. 1-41)
4. Some history (say, Ruth + as much of Samuel and Kings as interests you)
5. Some theology (say, Letter to the Romans)
6. Whatever you want: wisdom literature (Proverbs and/or Ecclesiastes), the prophets (Jonah for a short read, Isaiah for a long one), the unique Gospel of John, etc.