+1 to a 38 special ! My wife is petite & we went to the range this past Sat. She handled the Taurus 85 snub just fine. My .357 was too much for her & she liked my S&W .22 semi-auto, but it jammed once & she couldn't clear it by herself. A revolver always says bang & a .38 is plenty of punch for defense. Like the bumper sticker reads, "Nobody ever raped a .38!"