Captains Courageous - Great Illustrated Classics Author:Rudyard Kipling, Malvina G. Vogel, Ken Landgraf Written in 1897, Kipling's adventure tale relates how the over-indulged son of a millionaire finds himself serving aboard a Portuguese fishing vessel. The superstitious world of the sea and the tough, orderly life of the ship form a backdrop to the boy's transition into manhood.