Sylvester and the Magic Pebble

I read this book to the girls this afternoon before coercing them into take a nap. It's about a donkey that found a magic pebble. As he was carrying the pebble, he ran into a lion and got very scared. He couldn't think clearly, so he ended up wishing to be a rock. He could no longer walk, talk, etc., and his family missed him very much. In the end, his parents went to have a picnic in the field and used the rock as their table. His dad ended up finding the pebble and placing it on the rock. As Sylvester's parents were reminiscing about their son, Sylvester could hear them and wished to be turned back into himself. I'm sure you get the gist. Anyway, after reading the story, I was trying to talk to the girls about how it would feel to be a rock and not be able to talk or go home to your parents. Skylar quickly informed me that that would never happen in real life. When I asked why, she responded by telling me that she's never seen anyone turn into anything like that, and magic isn't real. So much for the questioning and higher level thinking skills (for you educators out there). Must we be SO literal at the ripe old age of 4, heaven forbid we use a little imagination. No fantasy for Skylar, we're moving straight to nonfiction, and I think we'll focus on self-help.