I’m skeptical of that figure. People like to present themselves as educated and well-read. Ayn Rand’s writing can be tough to get through, and Americans in general would rather watch TV or surf the interweb tubes than read a book. 8.1% have read parts of it, have heard of it, have seen something about Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie making a movie about it? I can believe that. But 8.1% have read the whole thing and retained enough to summarize the plot? No way.
I hope my five times doesn’t make the number even smaller.
I read it in my early twenties and have reread it several times, learning more each time. She agonized over every sentence and every sentence is worth reading. It’s true that you have to get into it in order to get into it, but worth it.