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After reading your posts, I'm am leaning toward the Browning 1911-22 (unless there are a lot of horror stories about the model that have not been posted yet).
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My 1911-22 was less than satisfactory, especially considering the price. It has acceptable reliability with mini-mags, and really nothing else. The shrunken grip/trigger dimensions and sights are also sub-optimal, though the grip issue would presumably be better for someone with very small hands. The concept seemed neat, but as a practical matter it didn't meet my expectations. In terms of value, it's been one of my worst handgun purchases.
Personally, I would have a hard look at a Ruger MK IV lite, checking to see if the grips fit the relevant hands. Also, as someone else mentioned, a 10/22 carbine might make sense as well. I'd definitely avoid anything made by Umarex.
I agree with an earlier poster who recommended the Beretta 71 -- I've had astonishingly good luck with both of mine. Broad-spectrum ammo reliability is a thing to behold. It's everything the 1911-22 might have been in a perfect world. Similar statements apply to classic Colt .22's (e.g. Woodsman, Huntsman). However, recommending a used gun to people who aren't really gun-people always seems kind of risky to me -- you have to account for the possibility of acquiring someone else's lemon, and the non-existent customer service and limited parts availability might become issues. For those reasons, I'd look at the MK IV lite first.
I do think .22 is highly under-rated. See, for example, the shooting study at:
https://www.buckeyefirearms.org/alte...stopping-power
You do pay a price for stepping down in power to .22LR, but the difference is far smaller than you'd expect, and one could easily argue that gains in accuracy/speed for a particular shooter might be far more important.