I think the best climbing book I ever read was "The Last Step: The American Ascent of K2," by Rick Ridgeway. It was written back in the 70s, and featured many of the legendary climbers of Pacific NW mountaineering. The internal bickering made it very interesting - the politics, the romance, the egos. And at the end it was very moving, with a high-altitude crisis somehwat like the one in this story, but with a happier result.
I'm surprised no one's mentioned the book or movie of "Touching the Void." There's a moral quandary on the mountain, ending with one guy cutting the rope on the other guy to save his own life.