A few years ago I read a really good book about Lindbergh. It is “The Flight of the Century: Charles Lindbergh and the rise of American Aviation”. It is by Thomas Kessner. It is an excellent read.
Much more than the title implies, this book is about aviation.
Chapter 9 in particular looks at the early role of the FAA (CAA at the time). According to the book, the FAA was basically conceived to keep small operators out of the aviation business–in the name of safety of course. Reading it helped me understand how the FAA got to where it is. It actually started out that way, by design.