Bill:
I'm just catching up on my reading and have seen your initial post on this thread.
I used to own one of the Beretta .25 ACPs and liked it pretty well. The tip-up barrel is an interesting design with its own advantages, but it has one little drawback. Since it ejects spent cartridges more or less straight up into the air, it can occasionally result in dropping a hot piece of brass down the front of an open blouse. (I won't go into detail as to how I learned that years ago other than to say that the lady involved never went to the range with me again and is no longer a part of my life. ;))
As noted by Twostar,the .22 LR and the .22 Magnum cartridges pack more "punch" than the .25 ACP, but they are also "dirtier" and do not feed as reliably in a semi-automatic weapon. I learned that back in 1965 when I purchased a Walther PPK chambered for .22 LR. (Great little plinker, if you didn't mind the occasional jams and "bites" on the shooting hand.)
You may recall from previous threads that my own little wife carried one of the NAA MiniMag revolvers until she "requisitioned" my Seecamp .32 with its old-ivory grips . . . this one:
(http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y30/RichardS/Seecamp.jpg)
Regarding the Taurus pistols, one of my Agency friends swears by them and has carried one for years in unpleasant places.
But all of that leads to this -- The "Baby Browning" ("Le Bébé") has been resurrected and is now being offered in this country by Precision Small Arms under license from Fabrique Nationale of Herstal, Belgium ("FN"). May I suggest either the Renaissance or Impériale model as worthy of your consideration. 8)
http://precisionsmallarms.com/imperiale.htm