For those looking for a popular culture examination of space elevators--albeit from a number of decades back--check out Arthur C. Clarke's The Fountains of Paradise. It also deals with some of the engineering issues, though again it's quite old.
Honestly that's my favorite Sci-Fi novel series of all time. Just give Red Mars a try and I prosome you won't be able to put it down.
I loved the trilogy, though.
(SPOILER!!!)
... the destruction of the space elevator by a terrorist organisation and the consequent destruction on the surface of Mars as the cable, released from its counterweight, wrapped itself around the planet... I’m not sure it’s a great example :-)
But I liked in the book, how it did not actually took sides, but just showed the implications of what violent struggle/war for independency on mars means for different sides. And mainly from the perspective of Nadia, the engineer who build things. And she sees everything just gets destroyed and smashed. (I got moved a bit by the memory)