 A 1925 opera "I cavalieri di Ekebù" by Riccardo Zandonai was also based on it.In the summer of 1890, a Swedish magazine, the "Idun", had offered a prize for the best novel of a certain length.Lagerlöf entered the contest with a few chapters from "Gösta Berling", a story which was then beginning to take shape in her mind, and won the prize.