I get the point of the post, but when most of the threads come up for guns recommended for wives or girlfriends usually it is stated that their significant other has very little and limited experience with guns. Often it is said that they do not have a profound interest in guns either, which only means to me that they will probably not be shooting it often or staying familiar with the controls or fundamentals. When smallish simple easy to use guns are recommended it is not because anyone thinks women are simple minded and puny and cannot figure out all the controls or handle a larger gun, it is because it was expressed that they are new to guns and don't have alot of experience. And in that case I would recommend the same regardless of male or female. Also lets be realistic here, mens hands are larger than womens.
Most full sized guns are designed for men's large hands. I am not going to recommend a Sig 226 or Beretta 92 for a woman due to the large grip size. Another problem for women I have noticed, and I have taken alot of my female friends shooting, is that they have a tough time manipulating the slide on alot of my guns. To ignore the fact that most men are stronger than women, and that manipulating a slide might be a problem for some women, just for the sake of equality, is ridiculous. Lets face it, men and women are not built the same.
A perfect example is my mother. She has her concealed carry license, though she has very little interest in guns. She does not enjoy to shoot and does not do so often. She does not take her gun out every now and then to dry fire or even familiarize herself with it, despite how much me and my father tell her she should. Just about every auto we had her try she had a tough time manipulating the slide. Between me and my father constantly having to show her how the safety works, how to clear jams, how to drop a magazine and insert a new one, and etc every time she was left alone in the house, we recommended a revolver and it was just about the best thing for her. By recommending a simple easy to use revolver we were not insulting her intelligence or ability, it was just the best choice for her and it worked out.