Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth is a 2010 bestselling children's fiction book by American author and cartoonist Jeff Kinney and is the fifth book in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. The Ugly Truth sold 548,000 copies in its initial week of publication, edging out Decision Points, which sold 437,000 copies. Kinney initially struggled with the decision of whether Greg would be a non-aging "cartoon character" or a literary character that would age and go through puberty, deciding to make puberty one of the book's themes. Kinney also debated over whether to end the series with five books, eventually deciding to continue the series. Summary This story begins with Greg explaining that since he and his best friend Rowley have had a big fight in the previous book, their friendship has been "history". Susan Heffley, Greg's mother, announces that she will be going back to college for a few months in order to stimulate her mind. As a result, the Heffley men must take care of themselves, and most stability falls apart. Food is often ruined, and since Susan usually does the chores around the house, Greg is short of clean clothes to wear. With Susan in college, Greg's father, Frank, gives Greg the responsibility of waking himself up in the morning. Greg tries a wind-up alarm clock, which he believes will be more effective than his last one, and puts it under his bed so that he has to get out of bed to find it. But with the clock ticking loudly under the bed, he feels like he is on top of a bomb and is therefore unable to sleep. As a result, Greg accidentally activates the school fire alarm in his sleep-deprived state, causing the entire school to evacuate. The fire department is called, but no fire is found. Everyone goes back in, and the principal tells them that whoever pulled the alarm will be suspended and should turn themselves in. Greg decides to keep a low profile about the culprit and does not get caught, but a rumor goes around that the fire alarm squirts an invisible liquid when the handle is pulled, which the teachers could detect with a special wand. Many dismiss this rumor as a trick for the teachers to see who goes to wash their hands first. As a result, no one goes to wash their hands, and