/lit/ - Literature

I'm a subliterate caveman with little time and little reading experience, but I want to change that. I have a son on the way, and I want to try and foster the same love of reading in him that I wasn't lucky enough to get when I was young, but I don't think I can do that unless I become an avid reader myself. So, how exactly does one get into reading as a hobby? How do you figure out what has good writing and what doesn't? Lastly, what titles would you suggest for someone very late to this field?