My husband bought me a nice little Taurus 38 special for my birthday a few years ago. I think it's a model 82? Not sure, they probably show it on the company website. They came out with a lighter one after I bought mine, but I've heard that the lighter one isn't as fun to shoot because it's not heavy enough to absorb the shock or whatever. Anyway, mine is not the light weight version, it's stainless and fairly heavy. I like it a lot, except for the fact that it's a little bulkier and heavier than some of those really cool little semi-autos for carrying concealed. A revolver is pretty foolproof, too.
I do need to use both hands to shoot this gun, I have no idea how it compares to other pistols because this one is the only one I've ever used. I was scared to shoot with a pistol at first, being new to guns, but I love it now.