Listening or reading any good books will increase your knowledge. Depends on your pick of audio books but almost all types have some knowledge in them for you to remember . Getting smarter ? That's up to you and the books you decide to read and how much you listen to them and absorb them.
Audio books can be more seclusive and so you pay more attention to what you are learning. Everyone learns differently though. Give it a try and see if it works for you.
They'll help to broaden your knowledge base.
I've learned a lot from books but much of what I learn is because something I read makes me curious enough to check it out. I used to use reference books but now the Internet is only a keystroke away. It's a wonderful resource.
An interesting experiment for you: Keep a note pad close and every time the author makes a literary or historical reference you don't understand, write it down and research it. Same goes for unfamiliar words. Most of us just kinda skip over that sort of thing, but you can learn a lot on the follow-up.
All knowledge is learning therefore good.
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