A Place to start

So how do I go about choosing books I would not normally read?
I am lucky in that my friends only recommend or pass on books that they know I'll like, so how to broaden my sphere?
Looking at Tree's examples on her blog I had a choice between the "1001 Books to Read Before You Die" or "The BBC Big Read."

I have gone for the Big Read, since it is a slighly less threatening list than the 1001 books. But I have copied the 200 book list rather than the 100. And there really are some books on there I would not normally go anywhere near.

This is the link:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/bigread/top100.shtml

I know this list is 5 years old, but it is a place to start.