Halloween Countdown: 8 joyful moments from the Harry Potter books

There are some dark and difficult times in each of the Harry Potter books, but we also have many moments in which we can enjoy the years Harry and his friends spent at Hogwarts. For our third Halloween Countdown day, here are eight of those moments.

1. "What did you expect, turnips?"

the Weasleys are the family many of us wish we had. Unapologetically fun and unhesitating in their generosity, they are everywhere you need them to be. In "The Mirror of Erised," Harry looks forward to nothing on Christmas, but finds himself doted on by more than one person. Ron has thought of the neglect Harry might suffer and the result is a Weasley sweater and fudge from Mrs. Weasley as well as a handmade flute from Hagrid and the heirloom of his father's Invisibility Cloak. He has family in the wizarding world and this is clear proof.

2. "The elf was doing something very odd."

I'll try not to reference the movies too much in this book-centric article, but this story has to be told. Utah Symphony has done the films as conceerts playing the score live with the movie. When I saw Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, I was one of 1500 people who spontaneously applauded loudly at the moment that Dobby was freed. The way that Harry tricks Mr. Malfoy in the book, having deduced the truth behind Tom Riddle's diary, is a fantastic twist to the ending of that subplot. Only thing better than Harry's deception is Dobby standing up to his former master.

3. The Quidditch Final

I am a Red Sox fan and am not ashamed to say that I love Quidditch whenever it comes up. Year 3's Quidditch final between Gryffindor and Slytherin is so satisfying. Harry has seen Malfoy have the upper hand too many times already, so beating him to the Snitch is satisfying. But then, "There was Percy jumping up and down like a maniac, all dignity forgotten." I don't know if a weeping Professor McGonagall or sobbing Oliver Wood is the more effective stand-in for readers, but it makes me remember screaming until I frightened neighbors when my team won the World Series.

4. Invitations to the Yule Ball

If I had to choose any one chapter to make me laugh on a bad day, it would be "The Unexpected Task" in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. The chapter opens with Ron and Harry acting like goofy teenagers in class and the theme only gains momentum from then. Ron suggests lassoing a girl when Harry can't get any one of them alone to ask her to the Yule Ball. Harry gets an invitation and is completely unprepared for this. While Hermione's mystery date is a subject of great interest, I like it best when Ron accidentally asks Fleur delaCoeur to the Ball. Wonder if that ever came up at family dinners once she married his older brother.

5. The Crumple-horned Snorcack plans

I think we can all agree that things just weren't as interesting before we met Luna Lovegood. I spent all of Year 5 knowing that she was going to surprise me in some way. It was just the way the characters worked by that point. She stood up for Harry, solved his transportation issue when flying to the Ministry of Magic, and talked Rita Skeeter into interviewing Harry for the equivalent of The National Enquirer for free. When the Daily Prophet buys Harry's interview about Voldemort's return, Luna and her father use the profits to go hunting for a favorite cryptid.

6. Several sunlit days

I'm not sure when I started rooting for Harry and Ginny, but I hoped from the Chamber of Secrets on that they'd have a good friendship. Harry has wrangled with feelings of jealousy and attraction and everything has gone awry in the lead-up to the Quidditch Final. Harry can't even play. But the moment he sees Ginny after the victory, he kisses her. Not everyone is as thrilled as the lovebirds, but we're glad to send them off for a long walk on their own.

7. The Godfather

In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, I was genuinely worried about the consequences of Harry telling off Remus Lupin. Of course, Lupin had a forgiving nature, but Harry standing in opposition to him at a moment when they needed his help was both a monumental sign of maturity and a potentially major mistake. When Remus not only came to his senses and returned to his wife, but came to Shell Cottage to announce the birth of his son, it was a wonderful reprieve from the war. His request that Harry be the godfather implied such a return to the man we admired in Year 3 that it eclipsed his doubts.

8. Neville the Hero

I'm cheating here because this "moment" is a culmination of everything from the ending of "The Missing Mirror" to Neville's decapitation of Nagini. Looking back at the forgetful child who broke his wrist in his first flying lesson, we couldn't have predicted that he would be the leader of Dumbledore's Army in Harry's absence, the warrior who helped tend to the dead during the long night of the Battle of Hogwarts, and the person who destroyed the last Horcrux. But we had been loving Neville more with each book and this was a well-earned character development.