The "least weak".....consider small-market and middle-market banks with no derivatives exposure........the ones that have rejected TARP money.......they have a better chance of eventually becoming buy-out candidates.
As somebody who has "read all financial books", you should know this. For us mere morals, the truth is that without access to board members and/or insider information there is no way to know the state of a bank's equity (not even to speak of if they can still be profitbale in the future).