Freya and the Magic Jewel by Joan Holub, Suzanne Williams

Freya and her brother have been invited to attend King Odin's school.  It's an honor but it's one she didn't want.  She likes her school, her world, and how life is going at home.  Her brother tries to get her enthused but it's not going over well.  She knows she has to go, though.  And her jewel tells her that adventure awaits her...

Aladdin Books and Edelweiss allowed me to read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published May 1st.

As they make the trip to the castle, they meet other children going there.  Some are nice, some are not.  And when everyone makes a rush to get there first, she gets knocked down and her jewel falls off the bridge and the dwarves grab it and hide.  She'll have to come back for it later.

The story is well paced, the children from the other worlds all are very different and some are quite difficult.  Freya is looking for her nanny who is missing, her jewel the dwarves took and half the time for her brother, who is adapting well to the new environment and is making new friends.  She's in a dorm room with other students and they get along fairly well.  I especially liked how they decided on a name for themselves as a group.

This was a very enjoyable tale with some Norse mythology mixed in.  It's great for middle grade students.