Abernathy, Robert 1924-1990 creator Freas, Kelly 1922-2005 text utu 2026 monographic en 1 online resource : multiple file formats Grandma's lie soap by Robert Abernathy is a satirical science fiction short story written in the mid-20th century. It imagines a simple household “lie soap” that makes it impossible to speak untruths, and explores its sweeping impact on advertising, politics, journalism, religion, and personal relationships. The narrator, Oliver, recalls his formidable grandmother’s homemade “lie soap,” which once forced fibbing children to tell the truth. Disillusioned by modern life and heartbreak, he persuades Grandma to give him the secret after a moon landing spooks her into fearing larger dangers. Back at his chemical company, Oliver and a colleague turn the soap into an active ingredient (“Verolin”) for toothpaste and mouthwash, and with a canny sales ally launch it worldwide. As people lose the ability to lie—even to themselves—media, propaganda, and corruption implode; courts, marriages, and diplomacy reset; and the Cold War thaws when truth spreads through rival regimes. Years later, Oliver, who has never taken the treatment himself, surveys a calmer, cleaner world that has also grown trusting to the point of gullibility. Disturbed by persistent UFO reports and the prospect of deceitful outsiders preying on honest humanity, he finally resolves to use the soap and ask himself the hardest question: Did he do right? (This is an automatically generated summary.) Release date is 2026-01-09 Tom Trussel (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) Originally published: New York: King-Size Publications, Inc., 1955 Science fiction Short stories Chemists -- Fiction Truthfulness and falsehood -- Fiction PS New York: King-Size Publications, Inc., 1955 https://archive.org/details/Fantastic_Universe_v05n01_1956-02/mode/2up https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77659 https://archive.org/details/Fantastic_Universe_v05n01_1956-02/mode/2up https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77659 UtSlPG 260607 20260610134811.0 77659