Joseph Conrad 
Youth 

’Then, on a fine moonlight night, all the rats left the ship.’Five men sit around a mahogany table, drinking claret. As the wine loosens their tongues, one tells a story from his youth, recounting the strange voyage of the doomed ship Judea. Inspired by Conrad’s own experiences at sea, Youth is a haunting tale about ill omens, the passing of time and the making of a man.