The story of the first journey by car around Australia and the author of the book telling this story has attracted a variety of national media attention in the country over the past few months. Adventist pastor and author David Riley and his story have been featured on national radio, in major newspapers and magazines, as well as on other media platforms.

For Riley, the highlight of the media attention came with an interview with Richard Fidler on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s “Conversations” radio program.

“I have been a fan of this national show for almost two decades,” he reflected. “It’s Australia’s most listened to radio and podcast program—I’m told each episode has between 3 million and 8 million listeners. So, to be interviewed by Richard Fidler on this national institution for an hour was a wonderful privilege.” 

As well as the on-air interview, he also said that their conversation continued after the recording was completed.

“During the interview, Richard asked about my faith, and when the recording stopped we had an extended conversation about family tragedy and how people cope,” said Riley, referencing his family’s experiences of tragedy in 2025.

Riley’s daughter Jessica was diagnosed with brain cancer in February last year and passed away in May, followed by Riley also being diagnosed with terminal cancer in August.

The Riley family’s story and faith became a feature of the media attention, which included a feature in Woman’s Day, a national magazine with more than 700,000 copies sold weekly, as well as many of the interviews on radio and in newspapers—including The West Australian and The Canberra Times. 

“I think the dynamic of losing my 17-year-old daughter to cancer earlier in the year—and then my own terminal diagnosis—has added to the media’s questions around the importance of faith in a loving God that provides significant comfort during difficult times,” he reflected.

Riley first encountered the story that became his book while making his own journey around Australia with his family in 2021. He took an additional trip the following year to research the story and follow the exact route of the first journey and the resulting book has also been well reviewed in its own right and stocked in almost every bookstore in Australia. 

In December, national newspaper The Weekend Australian included the book among a list of 20 notable new-release books that “make perfect Christmas gifts”, Unique Cars magazine described Bubsie and the Boys as “a must read,” and Good Reading magazine gave it a five-star review.

Published to mark the centenary of this significant national achievement, Bubsie and the Boys tells the story of the two young Seventh-day Adventists who set out from Perth on a journey commissioned by their church leaders to investigate establishing a mission station in Darwin. This initial leg of the journey had not previously been completed by car, and it was only after arriving in Darwin that the young men, Nevill Westwood and Greg Davies, were encouraged to continue driving around the continent by the Citroën dealer in Perth. Almost five months after leaving Perth and after falling out with his co-driver, Westwood completed the journey on December 28. The original 1923 Citroën 5CV is part of the collection in the National Museum of Australia in Canberra.

“The release of Bubsie and the Boys has given me a mainstream media platform to talk about the deeper things of life,” said Pastor Riley. “I hope I’ve done it adequately enough for some in the audience to reflect on priorities in their lives.

“I recently received a message from a professional in the mainstream media telling me that our conversations had them evaluating their own faith. That message was a wonderful reminder that all interactions can be a witness to others on what it means to be a believer.”

Bubsie and the Boys is available from Adventist bookstores in Australia and New Zealand, or online. The book is also available internationally from Amazon stores.

The original article was published on the South Pacific Division news site, Adventist Record.