Waugh Revisited

Having studied at the same Oxford college as Evelyn Waugh, I must admit an admiration for his novels, especially Brideshead Revisited, which I see as a sort of British Gatsby.

Today, I finished Scoop, recommended to me by many, including Frank Wilson.

My response comes in the form of several questions:

(1) To what extent can a novel drenched with cynicism be taken seriously by critics?

(2) Is Waugh overly dependent on dialogue?

(3) Is the plot of Scoop 'outrageous' (to the point of becoming silly)?

And (4) What is behind Waugh's attention to lands outside Europe? (I ask because A Handful of Dust concludes with a lengthy meditation on South America, as I recall.)

I enjoyed Scoop, but not nearly as much as Brideshead, which remains - in the States, at least - a surprisingly hidden gem.