According to MobyLives, it looks like the perennially on-the-ropes Borders is trying to buy the much larger, and financially healthier, Barnes & Noble:

“A major shareholder of Borders Group Inc. proposed that the bookseller acquire much bigger rival Barnes & Noble Inc., in a gamble to unite the two giant but struggling retailers at a time of major tumult in the book industry.”

As the report details, “A hedge fund managed by Borders investor William Ackman is now offering to finance a bid of $960 million in cash, or $16 per share, for Borders to buy the much bigger Barnes & Noble, which put itself up for sale in August. Mr. Ackman, whose Pershing Square Capital Management LP holds 37.3% of Borders shares, made his offer in a regulatory filing that became public Monday.”

Borders-and-Barnes & Noble rumors have been flying since the two national chains got started, but this is the first time in a while that I've seen rumors suggesting that Borders will buy B&N; lately, it's been the other way around.