(REAL SIMPLE) -- With soaring gas prices and travel costs, the cheapest route to whisk yourself away this summer is through a good book. Ten top-selling authors share their favorite lazy-summer-day reads.



• One-day reads



Augusten Burroughs "The Member of the Wedding," by Carson McCullers "A slender 163 pages, but it inhales all the light, matter, and gravity in the vicinity. Stunningly evocative and gorgeously written, this truly magnificent book will replace your entire life for one perfect day."



Jackie Collins "Whacked," by Jules Asner "She's a first-time author, married to director Steven Soderbergh, and this delicious tale of revenge -- set in L.A. -- rocks!"



Nelson Demille "The Prince," by Niccolò Machiavelli "It's, well...Machiavellian. A great help if you're dealing with a summer landlord or a difficult au pair."



Janet Evanovich "The Concrete Blonde," by Michael Connelly "A classic in Connelly's Harry Bosch detective series -- and one of my favorites."



Elizabeth Gilbert "The Principles of Uncertainty," by Maira Kalman "Gorgeous and touching. A quirky year-in-the-life as told by one of our most wonderful illustrators -- short in words, but rich in little visual pleasures."



Philippa Gregory "Dragonwyck," by Anya Seton "A gothic novel set in 1844 America. At times it's utterly ridiculous, but it is truly haunting. Think an American Jane Eyre at high speed. A great book to gulp down in a day."



Sophie Kinsella "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time," by Mark Haddon  "Its hero, an autistic 15-year-old, is one of the most poignant in contemporary literature."



James Patterson "No Country for Old Men," by Cormac McCarthy "The only thriller I have ever read that also qualifies as art, at least in my mind."



Jodi Picoult "The Third Angel," by Alice Hoffman  "I inhale anything Alice writes, but this stunning book is among her loveliest. Once I started it, I didn't put it down."



Danielle Steel "Change of Heart," by Jodi Picoult "Anything by Jodi Picoult."



• Books for a long weekend



Augusten Burroughs "The House of Mirth," by Edith Wharton  "The only thing more delicious than spending a weekend reading The House of Mirth is reading it in the grass or on the sand. Mosquitoes will leave you alone. It will not rain. This is Edith Wharton. Nature bends."



Jackie Collins "The Great Gatsby," by F. Scott Fitzgerald  "Jay Gatsby is so charismatic, sexy, and mysterious, and I love him. Good to share with a guy in bed!"



Nelson Demille "The Gold Coast," "by me" "What can I say? Read it on the beach and attract favorable comments."



Janet Evanovich "The Two Minute Rule," by Robert Crais It's Crais, for crying out loud! Who wouldn't want to spend a weekend with Robert Crais?"



Elizabeth Gilbert "The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down," by Anne Fadiman  "The heartbreaking true story of an immigrant Hmong child's epilepsy and the American doctors who tried to 'cure' her (not realizing that traditional Hmong families see epilepsy as something of a blessing). A story of moral and cultural complexity."



Philippa Gregory "Lottery," by Patricia Wood "A hugely feel-good novel that had me laughing out loud at the hero's rise to happiness from absolute despair."



Sophie Kinsella "The Tenderness of Wolves," by Stef Penny  "A gripping, atmospheric murder story set in the snowy wastes of Canada, with some wonderful descriptions of an extreme landscape. I never knew I could be so riveted by snow!"



James Patterson "Mrs. Bridge and Mr. Bridge," by Evan S. Connell  "Astonishingly different points of view, in two books
What did Sophie Kinsella say? What does Jackie Collins recommend? Who wrote the book?
"Its hero, an autistic 15-year-old, is one of the most poignant in contemporary literature." "Whacked," by Jules Asner Carson McCullers
question: What did Sophie Kinsella say?, answer: "Its hero, an autistic 15-year-old, is one of the most poignant in contemporary literature." | question: What does Jackie Collins recommend?, answer: "Whacked," by Jules Asner | question: Who wrote the book?, answer: Carson McCullers