What should a new Orthodox convert read first?

When you are new, the emphasis should be 100 percent on reading the Gospels, reading Blessed Theophylact's commentaries on the Gospels, understanding the basics of the Holy Trinity and the Nicene Creed, then reading the lives of the saints. I am very much opposed to people who are new reading heavy theological books. It does not work. They do not have a spiritual foundation in place.

They are not praying, they are not really fasting, and they think they can understand Orthodoxy with their brain. They cannot. Orthodoxy is something you have to live. It is very organic, very alive. It is not a theological system. Reading the lives of the saints and understanding how the saints lived out their faith is really important. For the average layperson, knowing some nuance of what happened in the 5th century in terms of canon law is not going to help you love your wife or your children better.