The Old Man And The Sea by Ernest Hemingway

The Old Man And The Sea is a novella by Ernest Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961), written in Cuba in 1951 and published in 1952. The Old Man and the Sea was the last major work of fiction to be produced by Ernest Hemingway and published in his lifetime. One of his most famous works, The Old Man and the Sea centers upon Santiago, an aging Cuban fisherman who struggles with a giant marlin far out in the Gulf Stream.
Ernest Hemingway's novella The Old Man and the Sea recounts an epic battle of wills between an old, experienced fisherman and a giant marlin said to be the largest catch of his life. It opens by explaining that the fisherman, who is named Santiago, has gone 84 days without catching any fish at all. He is apparently so unlucky that his young apprentice, Manolin, has been forbidden by his parents to sail with the old man and been ordered to fish with more successful fishermen. Still dedicated to the old man, however, the boy visits Santiago's shack each night, hauling back his fishing gear, feeding him and discussing American baseball—most notably Santiago's idol, Joe DiMaggio. Santiago tells Manolin that on the next day, he will venture far out into the Gulf to fish, confident that his unlucky streak is near its end.
Thus on the eighty-fifth day, Santiago sets out alone, taking his skiff far onto the Gulf. He sets his lines and, by noon of the first day, a big fish that he is sure is a marlin takes his bait. Unable to pull in the great marlin, Santiago instead finds the fish pulling his skiff... (Summary by Wikipedia)