Recoil is very subjective, what is manageable to me may be unbearable toyoufor example. It doesn't make me right oryou wrong its just the way it is. That being said, I would guage my 300 wsm as equivalent to shooting a 12 gauge with 3 inch turkey loads. It has some kick but nothing unbearable.

Yes, I would guess that recoil certainly could be an issue for your friend. I would suggest shooting something on the mild side of recoil to begin with. He could start with say a 25-06 or 7mm-08 to begin with.