An unremarkable Big Day Out lineup this year had us turning our attention to the many ways that Australian flags and other patriotic objects can be repurposed as style statements.

Do you want to celebrate Australia Day without looking like a neo-nazi or a Patagonian? The Enthusiast provides an alternative to flag-capes and Southern Cross tatts.

British alt-fantasy titan China Miéville returns with a provocative novel that uses a detective story to explore the liminal spaces of city life and the bizarrely arbitrary foundations of nationalism.