Fantasy Advent Day 16: The Harry Potter holidays ranked, Part 2

Welcome back to the ranking of the Harry and Hogwarts holidays. The one in first place might be predictable, but stay tuned to see where your favorites fall.

4. Yule Regret This: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

This is a curious thing, since my favorite stand-alone chapter for sheer wit is "The Unexpected Task." I adore how normal it is for witches and wizards to struggle with social expectations and the chapter about everyone finding dates to the Yule Ball is just hilarious to me. The Yule Ball itself has some wonderful parts, like Dumbledore low-key mentioning the Room of Requirement and winking at Harry or Hermione being happy to be there with Victor Krum while everyone is flabbergasted by her transformation.

On the other hand, my gosh are people awful to each other in this Christmas celebration. Ron and Harry both treat their dates poorly, though Ron's seem to be deliberate while Harry sets the stage for not picking up on distress in the fifth book. Hagrid tries to be romantic for possibly the first time and gets lambasted for implying that his new friend is half-giant, while that friend refuses to make an honest connection with him. And worst of all, Ron treats Hermione as an idiot on one hand and a traitor to her own friends on the other.

3. Cat's out of the bag: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

I honestly don't remember most of this holiday because the mystery of the Heir of Slytherin is what really matters. Even Hermione finishes her potion-brewing before coming to deliver Christmas presents. Petrifications are happening and three Gryffindors take a bit of a risk to figure out what Malfoy knows.

Of course, they still have a wonderful Christmas. Mrs. Weasley doesn't hold the flying car against Harry and sends him cake and a new jumper. The students and teachers still at school have a magnificent feast. There's even a Christmas sing-along and Harry's in such a good mood that he doesn't take Malfoy's rudeness to heart. This book isn't higher on the list because of the dread and Hermione's accidental transformation into a cat-human.

2. A real Firebolt: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry gets to the holidays in high dudgeon,, having just discovered that his parents' deaths were caused by the treachery of their best friend. When he goes to take his anger out on Hagrid, he sets it aside because of the sympathy he feels for the man who might lose Buckbeak on false charges.

I love that Mrs. Weasley includes mince pies in this year's package, since those are my favorite treat. Harry gets the incredible gift of the Firebolt to replace his shattered Nimbus 2000 and Hermione's suspicions about it do ruin the end of the holiday.

On the other hand, the feast is delightful. Professor Dumbledore is kind to a newer student, but also takes the vulture-topped hat meant to taunt Snape and wears it cheerfully. It's fun to see Professor McGonagall and Professor Trelawney butt heads, especially when Professor McGonagall comes out on top.

1. Erised: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

I have to put this one in first place for a simple reason: This is the one Christmas Harry spends with his family. We never really know what happened to the Mirror of Erised, but in the first place that Harry has truly felt at home, he finds a way to connect with the parents he never knew. He also gets some empathetic, but practical, advice from Dumbledore on how to live with a sense of loss.

It's also the first year where he is on the receiving end of his found family's generosity. The Weasleys won't let him be overlooked, no matter how recently they've met him or how new his relationship to the clan is. Harry getting a Weasley jumper is one of the best things about the holiday and there's no arguing with that.

Hope this list of holidays reminds you of what ones you yourself have enjoyed for one reason or another.