A good home set to cover nearly every eventuality would be:
24cm chef's knife. 21cm (8") is a neither here nor there lengthin for a chef's. If he has any technique at all -- largely in terms of a proper grip -- a 24cm will be a lot more productive.
15cm "petty." A petty is a "utility" length with the shape of a parer. Quite a few cooks are switching away from shorter parers and using our pettys for nearly every short and medium length task -- whether trimming, boning, peeling, coring, or what have you. I'm a convert and very seldom use any of my shorter knives except for opening packages and cutting string.
Bread knife. Global doesn't make great bread knives. FWIW, I recommend the 10.5" MAC Superior and the long Forschner. They're excellent for pastry as well.
24cm - 30cm slicer. If you buy large cuts and portion them yourself, a long slicer is a very important knife. Of course, they're also the knife of choice for "carving."
Globals have issues. They can't be made as sharp as other Japanese manufactured knives in the same price range. In addition, they're thicker and even when they're sharp will tend to wedge and will "act" less sharp. On the other hand, they're light and very agile. Compared to European made knives they're a real step up, but not the Japanese. If you want to explore other brands we can. But if your husband really wants Global -- that trumps.
As for you young lady...
Unless you have to wear heels to see the counter top, your problem with longer knives isn't stature or hand size. It's all in the grip. Read Getting a Grip on a Good Pinch, practice the techiques for a couple of weeks, and see if it doesn't change your outlook on longer knifes. On the other hand, there's not one thing wrong with using what's comfortable.
BDL
