The directory splitter is used to split, for subsequent pulping, a directory, such as a telephone directory (50), which has highly flexible pages sandwiched between relatively inflexible covers and in which the covers and pages are connected together at a glued spine. The splitter has a cutting site at which a cutting blade (20) severs the spine from the covers and pages. The covers and pages and then moved in a stack from the cutting site to a suction site at which a perforated drum (37) connected to a suction source applies suction to the lower cover and separates it from the pages and the remaining cover. The pages and remaining cover are then moved in a stack to a separation site at which the pages are separated. The pages and the covers are therefore recovered separately. In addition, the spine is recovered apart from the pages and the covers.